Mohamed Youssef, the sporting director of Al Ahly club, celebrates his 55th birthday today, Thursday. Born on October 9, 1970, he has had a distinguished career in Egyptian football, both with Al Ahly and the national team.

Youssef first wore Al Ahly’s jersey in the 1989-1990 season under coach Mahmoud Al-Sais and continued until the 1999-2000 season in the Turkish league. He then returned to Enppi at the start of his rise to prominence until his retirement in 2004.

Youssef played with the Olympic team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, won the African Cup of Nations title in Burkina Faso in 1998, and participated in the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup in Mexico.

He played 10 seasons with Al Ahly, winning 6 Egyptian Premier League titles (1993-94, 1994-95, 1995-96, 1996-97, 1997-98, and 1998-99), 4 Egypt Cups, the Arab Cup Winners’ Cup, the African Cup Winners’ Cup, and 4 Arab championships. He appeared in over 210 matches for Al Ahly, scoring 5 goals.

Although Youssef played as a central defender, he scored several notable goals for Al Ahly, including a goal against Zamalek in 1994 during the Cairo derby, which Al Ahly won 3-0, and a powerful long-range shot against Al Mokawloon.

Internationally, Mohamed Youssef was part of the Egyptian squad that won the 1998 African Cup of Nations.

After entering coaching, he followed the same path and led Al Ahly as head coach to win the CAF Champions League in 2013. He also served as interim head coach multiple times, rescuing the team when needed.

Currently, he serves as Al Ahly’s sporting director, following the departure of Swiss coach Marcel Koller, then José Ribeiro, and the temporary appointment of Emad El Nahhas until Al Ahly signed Danish coach Jesper Sørensen for two and a half seasons.