African stars are shining all over the world, and one such individual rose as a giant among them with his performance on the weekend.
On Saturday, Al Ahly won the CAF Champions League for a record-extending 12th time after they beat Esperance Sportive de Tunis by a goal to nil at the Cairo International Stadium, and Akram Tawfiq was at the heart of the Red Devils' sterling midfield display, earning him the Man of the Match award in what was one of the side's most important games of the campaign.
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The Egypt international, who was given the nickname "Mufasa" by former coach Pitso Mosimane, expressed a real sense of gratitude when receiving his prize, showing his selfless nature by praising everyone but himself after a fearless showing on the pitch.
"My team played a great match and showed real determination to win the title," Tawfiq said after being handed the individual award, per CAF. "I dedicate this victory to the fans, the board and everyone at the club. It's the culmination of a lot of effort and hard work."
The midfielder excelled in his side's engine room and received praise from every other direction, and this performance and continental triumph will mean so much to the star given his battles with injuries in recent times. This is always considered to be a worry because it's not often a player can return from a serious injury and pick up where he left off in terms of high levels of performance.
At the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, the 26-year-old suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury while representing his national side. Things would not get much better for him on the physical health front as he then tore his ACL in December 2022, and ended up missing 49 games for his club last season.
This season, it has been a different role for the man who is best known as a right-back, with Ahly manager Marcel Koller opting to deploy him as a central midfielder. Based on the success his side have just recently achieved, it was a good decision. Speaking after the match, the Swiss tactician praised his star performer and revealed that he even needed to tell Tawfiq to dial the tenacity down a bit.
Despite that, it is a relief to know that in a footballing world that has seemingly gone "soft", evidenced by more and more players opting to pull out of challenges or falling over at the slightest of contact in the hopes of winning free-kicks for their side, a player who goes into every challenge with a sense of fearlessness and intensity can still be appreciated.
"Tawfiq was participating in the midfield position before I led the team," the manager, said per Masrawy. "He played with me as a right-back and was injured because of the strength with which he played. I advised him to calm down after his return from injury and that he needed time to come back again, which he did not like."
His versatility, which allows him to play at right-back and in central midfield, both as a number six and a number eight, demonstrates a player who is secure both defensively and offensively, which makes him a valuable asset for any manager. However, as the Al Ahly boss highlighted, the 26-year-old's scorching spirit may be his biggest asset.
"But in the end, he worked and worked hard in the middle of the field, fought and fought, and played a better return match than the first leg against Esperance, and all his decisions were correct," Koller added.
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