The Portuguese coach lost his job last month after Zamalek’s 2-1 loss to Ghazl El-Mahalla, which extended the team’s winless streak to five games.

In what could be described as a bizarre move, Zamalek's president, who had led the wave to sack the coach, declared that the club is open for Ferreira's return only four days after his departure.

The president was quoted as welcoming Ferreira back after Zamalek’s 2-1 win against Future FC under the tutelage of Ossama Nabih, a former Ferreira assistant. The club announced officially the reinstatement of the Portuguese coach on February 2 nd.

‘’There are no problems with Ferreira. He is a great coach but the club’s board had to take action after the team’s poor results. We are sure that Ferreira is capable to help the team regain its form,” Zamalek president told the club’s official TV channel.

Zamalek lie fourth in the league table with 29 points, eight points behind leaders Ahly who still have a match on hand.

The White Knights cannot afford the luxury of losing more points, in order to keep their slim chances of winning the title this season alive.

Theoretically, Zamalek's chances of defending their title, won in the two previous editions, are very slim.

Despite the win against Future FC, the team’s problems compounded with the departure of  its classy midfielder Emam Ashour who joined Danish side Midtjylland.

It is clear that Zamalek suffered during the past games from lack of creativity. It was also very strange to see the club accept the departure of the only player in the team who can make the difference alongside Ahmed ‘Zizo’ Sayed.

Things went from bad to worse with the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) blocking the registration of the team’s winter-signings Ahmed Belhadji and Nasser Mansi over unpaid dues.

Consequently, the mission of the Portuguese coach, who led Zamalek to the domestic double in his two previous spells, will not be easy this term.

He named his squad for Pharco FC game that saw the presence of Senegalese winger Ibrahim N’Daye who has been out of action since last October.

The list saw the absence of defender Mohamed Abdel-Ghani and winger Mahmoud ’Shikaballa’ Abdel-Razek.

The position of Pharco FC in the table will make Zamalek's mission on Monday so difficult.

The Alexandria based-club are 12 th in the table with 16 points, three points ahead of bottom side Dakhleya.

Defensive-minded coach Tarek El-Ashri, who took charge of the team at the end of the last month at the expense of former Pharaohs coach Ihab Galal, will be eager to avoid loss against Zamalek, thus making Zamalek’s mission even more difficult.

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