Middlesbrough: Which Mido Will Land At Zamalek?

The turnover of clubs on Hossam Mido’s CV doesn’t look set to immobilise anytime in the near future as the Egyptian striker has engineered a career U-turn back to his boyhood club of Zamalek on a season-long loan.
Zamalek spokesperson Sabri Serag told the club's official website: "We paid Middlesbrough 4million Egyptian pounds to acquire Mido's services. We can also sign him permanently next summer if we pay £1million to the English side."

Every ounce of promise exhibited by the 26-year-old has been eclipsed by a negligent tendency to become embroiled in off-field antics, and this coupled with a fiery temperament has been a major source of aggravation for his endless list of employers.

North African giants Zamalek can be credited for unearthing the uncut diamond little short of a decade ago but while the everlasting hope was that he would stamp his impression on Europe with a downpour of goals, it was the tremors of his toys thudding the ground in the aftermath of yet another face-off with his superiors which have developed into his forte. Ten clubs in as many seasons as a professional pays homage to Mido’s inability to settle and such a fact must act in opposition to any would-be suitors, strengthened over the past two seasons with the rapid occurrences of injury.

Yet home comfort could provide relief for Mido as the window of opportunity draws to a closer shut, the age of immaturity sailed past years ago and the last opportunity to charm one of Europe’s watchmen is now distinctly on the horizon. Establishing a partnering with Amr Zaki in the Zamalek attack should prosper in the lesser-standard of the Egyptian Premier League, thrusting Mido back into the international setup in plenty of preparation for the 2010 World Cup if he can consign fitness woes and attitude turmoil to the past.

The former Gent, Ajax, Celta Vigo, Marseille, Roma…(BREATHE)…Tottenham, Middlesbrough and Wigan frontman has it all to prove to discard his bad-boy reputation and, galloping towards the peak years of his career, naivety and rawness are not legitimate reasons for attracting unwanted attention anymore. Even as a character that cannot be divorced from controversy, the urgency to execute a cunning strike of the ball and delve into the goalscoring charts once again has never been so great.