A day after his official appointment: Egypt's assistant coach announces his departure

What is happening inside the Egypt camp?

Bassem Ali has sparked controversy by announcing his departure from Egypt's technical staff, just a day after the Football Association officially named him among the supporting staff of new head coach Ali Maher.

The former Al-Ahly player broke the news through his personal Instagram account, thanking the technical staff and wishing them well for the period ahead.

Posting via his Stories, Ali confirmed he had accepted the decision. He had hoped to work with the new technical staff and represent his country, he said, but insisted he backed Maher and his supporting staff, urging fans to get behind them in the coming months.

Ali's message read as follows: "It is God's decree and what He willed He did, first and last, and our Lord has never done anything bad to any human being, and I am content with His wisdom, so praise and thanks are always to God. I hope people will stand by and support captain Ali Maher and his respected technical staff, whom I had the honour of being one of, among whom I wish them every success in the coming period. I wished I could be with them and represent our country's national team, because it is a great honour for any coach to be present and to represent our country's national team. Every success to this respected staff that deserves support and backing, and our Lord will compensate me, God willing, Lord of the Worlds."

Maher officially took charge of the Egypt national team last Saturday, succeeding Hossam Hassan. A day later, he chose his supporting staff: Mohamed Abdel Karim as general coach, Bassem Ali as assistant coach, and Mostafa Fathy as goalkeeping coach.