The highly talented striker is known almost as much for his volatile temperament as his footballing prowess, which appears to be the chief reason why he never seems to have settled in a whirlwind career which has taken him to Belgium, Holland, Spain, France, Italy and England, writes Andy Hampson.
Mido is a highly talented but controversial forward who remains a huge star in his homeland Egypt despite an unsettled club and international career.
At 25, Mido has already played for eight clubs and there were rumours recently that he might be looking for a ninth despite a promising start to Middlesbrough’s Barclays English Premier League campaign.
Mido is known almost as much for his volatile temperament as his footballing prowess, which appears to be the chief reason why he never seems to have settled in a whirlwind career which has taken him to Belgium, Holland, Spain, France, Italy and England.
He has also been suspended twice by his national side. Yet, when in form, Mido is quick, skilful, strong and a fine finisher. It is not difficult to understand why various managers have tried to tame his wild side.
Mido, who was born in Cairo and whose full name is Ahmed Hossan, first came to Europe in 2000 when he joined Belgian side Gent after being spotted playing for Egyptian club El-Zamalek.
He made enough of an impression in his one season there to earn a move to Dutch giant Ajax and spent two seasons in Amsterdam, netting 21 goals from 46 Eredivisie or UEFA Champions League appearances, but that was far from the full story. His time with the club was overshadowed by disputes with coach Ronald Koeman. He was sent on loan to Celta Vigo before being sold to Marseille.
He had a year at the Stade Velodrome, where he was largely overshadowed by Didier Drogba, and then moved on again to Roma after scoring nine goals.
His stay in Rome proved even shorter. He arrived injured and within months was being linked with a move elsewhere as the club looked to balance the books. Valencia and Newcastle were among those strongly rumoured, but he was eventually sent to Tottenham on an 18-month load deal in January 2005.
Mido made a quick impression at Spurs and went on to net 14 goals in 28 games in 2005/06. It seemed he had a future at White Hart Lane but the club was frustrated in its attempts to agree for a permanent deal and he was sent back to Roma at the end of his loan.
The club eventually secured the player’s services permanently in August 2006 but while he had been away it had also signed Bulgaria star Dimitar Berbatov. With Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe also on the books, Mido faced too much competition to earn a regular start and he moved to Middlesbrough a year later after scoring just five more goals.
His first season at Boro proved a frustrating one due to two lengthy spells out injured and a three-match ban for a sending off. He has returned to hit the ground running this term with four goals in Boro’s first five games but competition at the Riverside is also great and he is not an automatic choice. He was linked with a move to Wigan before the transfer window closed.
Mido’s career has been punctuated by a long list of controversies — the most notorious of which came during his time at Ajax when he allegedly lost his temper and threw a pair of scissors at team-mate Zlatan Ibrahimovic after an argument.
He also clashed on numerous occasions with Koeman, who publicly questioned the player’s attitude and criticised him for a lack of effort in training and poor performances on the field. On one occasion, Mido hit back by calling a press conference to say he wanted to leave before an uneasy truce was agreed.
Mido has also had a love-hate relationship with his national side. He is one of the team’s undoubted stars, but in 2004 he was suspended after falling out with then coach Marco Tardelli. He returned to the fold when he apologised following Tardelli’s departure but he clashed with new boss Hassan Shehata after being substituted in the 2006 African Nations Cup. He was banned for six months by the national federation but apologised soon after and was restored.
Mido married Yosra Wael in 2002 in a ceremony that was filmed for Egyptian TV. Their engagement was announced just two weeks after his relationship with Miss Belgium 2000 ended. They have a son, Ali, born in 2004.
Mido loves Ferraris and went out to buy one immediately — within five minutes, according to some reports — after signing for Ajax. “You only live once and you want to make something nice of it,” he said.
FactfileName: MidoPosition: StrikerClub: MiddlesbroughDOB: 23/02/1983Egypt caps: 48Egypt goals: 19Egypt debut: v UAE, January 2001Moment to rememberMido could not have made a better start at Tottenham, scoring two goals on his debut against Portsmouth in February 2005.
Moment to forgetMido, who had only been on the field 10 minutes, was sent off in a game at Arsenal last season for a high tackle which caught Gael Clichy in the face. The prone defender was carried off on a stretcher as a result.
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