Hossam Ghaly

Football player infobox
playername = Hossam Ghaly


fullname = Hossam El Sayed Ghaly
(Arabic: حسام غالي)
height = height|m=1.83
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1981|12|15
cityofbirth = Kafr El-Sheikh
countryofbirth = Egypt
currentclub = Tottenham Hotspur
clubnumber = TBA
position = Midfielder
youthyears =
youthclubs = El-Ahly
years = 2002–2003
2003–2006
2006–
2008
clubs = El-Ahly
Feyenoord
Tottenham Hotspur
→ Derby County (loan)
caps(goals) = 22 (1)
49 (3)
21 (2)
15 (0)
nationalyears = ??
nationalteam = Egypt
nationalcaps(goals) = 26 (2)
pcupdate = 21:43, 27 May 2008 (UTC)
ntupdate = 17:34, 24 June 2008 (UTC)

Hossam El Sayed Ghaly (ArB|حسام غالي) (born December 15, 1981 in Kafr El-Sheikh) is an Egyptian football midfielder who currently plays for Tottenham Hotspur. Ghaly plays mainly as a Centre midfielder, less frequently as a right full-back and due to injuries even an outside midfielder. He has played 21 international matches for Egypt.

Career

Ghaly is a product of El-Ahly youth team, and he broke into the first team squad in 2001. He played regularly for el-Ahly until he moved to Feyenoord Rotterdam, in 2003 despite interest from numerous other European clubs such as VfB Stuttgart and FC Nantes. The transfer fee was said to be around 1.4 million Euros.

After three troublesome seasons in The Netherlands, Ghaly joined Tottenham Hotspur in January 2006.

Tottenham Hotspur

Ghaly was given the number 14 jersey and had performed well with the club during his stay there, earning the respect of some fans. A memorable performance included a fantastic performance against rivals Chelsea F.C in which Ghaly gave Spurs a temporary 3-1 lead in the FA Cup. Ghaly also had helped Tottenham score several penalty kicks, which were often the winning goals in the game; A Ghaly dive in the middle of the penalty box against Blackburn Rovers saw Jermain Defoe score a penalty kick which resulted in the game ending in 1-1 draw. Ghaly's second encounter with Blackburn however is remembered merely due to its affiliation with infamy.

His future at Tottenham was left in doubt after he pulled off his shirt and threw it to the ground after being substituted during a Premier League match against Blackburn on 10 May 2007. Ghaly had been brought on in the first half after an injury to Steed Malbranque, and rebelled when brought off. The Tottenham fans were left angry at Ghaly's reaction, singing "You're not fit to wear the shirt" and he was disciplined by the club soon after. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/t/tottenham_hotspur/6645535.stm Jol vows to deal with angry Ghaly] "BBC Sport". URL accessed on May 11 2007] He issued the following apology: "I am just so angry with myself," Ghaly told the official Spurs site. "I have always considered it an honour to wear the Tottenham shirt and I never intended to show any disrespect".

"I knew things weren't happening for me out there, my play was terrible and I could hear the crowd jeering me. I was so upset at the fans' reaction. I have enjoyed playing in front of the club's supporters all season and I felt I had given of my best all the time and played some decent football. It is always hard to accept being substituted after such a short period of time and I was upset and taken aback by the cheering. I am a player who plays with my heart".

"I know my reaction was totally wrong. I have apologised to the manager and I also want to apologise to the fans. I hope they don't judge me on this incident alone. I have tried hard for the club this season".

Nonetheless, he was not to play for the club again. He stated that he wished to leave Tottenham due to his frustration at being unable to play in central midfield. [

[http://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/news/articles/ghalysregret.html GHALY'S REGRET] "tottenhamhotspur.com". URL accessed on May 13 2007]

He was set to move to Birmingham City for a fee of £3 million on July 30, 2007 (subject to work permit), signing a three-year contract with an option for two further years. [cite news | date=July 30, 2007 | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/b/birmingham_city/6917009.stm| title=Birmingham wrap up £3m Ghaly deal| publisher=BBC Sport| accessdate=2007-07-30] , however, on August 3rd, Birmingham announced they would not be completing the deal due to Ghaly's objections to Birmingham's training methods, as well as badmouthing Birmingham's players. [ [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/sport/football.html?in_article_id=472981&in_page_id=1 Grumbling Ghaly run out of City by Bruce | the Daily Mail ] ]

In January 2008, Derby County expressed an interest in Ghaly. They agreed terms with Tottenham Hotspur and the player to take him on loan until the end of the season. [ cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/d/derby_county/7174882.stm |title=Derby seal loan signing of Ghaly |publisher=bbc.co.uk |date=11 January 2008 ] Ghaly made his debut during Derby's 1-0 home defeat to Wigan Athletic on January 12. After 12 games and the relegation of Derby to the Championship, Paul Jewell revealed he will not sign him as Ghaly wished to stay in the Premiership. [ cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/derby_county/7403035.stm |title= Ghaly will be moving on - Jewell |date=15 May 2008 |publisher=BBC Sport ]

References

External links

*FIFA player|183026|Hossam Ghali
*soccerbase|id=34576|name=Hossam Ghaly
* [http://www.egyptianplayers.com/Ghaly/Hossam-Ghaly-page.htm Full bio in Europe]
* [http://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/players/hossamghaly.html Spurs bio]
* [http://www.feyenoord.com//domains/feyenoord/pages/datapresenter.asp?contentcode=SPELER_HOMEPAGE&dataid=12820000002900 Feyenoord bio]
* [http://www.ahlyegypt.com/ El-Ahly Sports Club]
* [http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11676_3591157,00.html Blackburn Offer]