Ahmed Shobeir criticizes son Mostafa after Egypt's loss to South Africa

Egyptian broadcaster Ahmed Shobeir has criticized the performance of his son, Mostafa Shobeir, Egypt’s national team goalkeeper, following the Pharaohs’ defeat to South Africa, stating that “the goalkeeper shares responsibility along with the defense due to tactical errors that appeared during the match.”

Speaking on his program Sunday evening, Shobeir emphasized that he evaluates matches with complete neutrality, setting aside family ties. He noted that “Mostafa Shobeir performed well at times, but made significant mistakes related to positioning, decision-making on crosses, and handling the opponent’s attacking pressure.”

Shobeir added that “Mostafa has great potential and is progressing steadily, but wearing the national team jersey comes with strict standards, as mistakes in international matches can be very costly for the team.” He stressed that objective assessment is the only way to improve performance and address errors in the future.

Match details and team performance

Egypt concluded the recent international break with a 1-0 friendly defeat to South Africa at Cairo International Stadium, as both teams prepared for upcoming competitions.

South Africa scored the only goal in the 51st minute through Boso Dithejane, who capitalized on a counterattack and a misjudged advance by goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir, dribbled past defender Hossam Abdelmaguid, and finished into an empty net.

Egypt had started the international break with a goalless draw against Angola in the opening round of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, before securing a 5-0 away win over South Sudan in the second round.