Sharjah 24: The Sharjah Press Club of the Sharjah Government Media Bureau concluded the eleventh edition of the annual Ramadan Majlis with its third session, held at Al Majaz Amphitheatre.

The third session titled "The Professional Mindset in Football ... Details of the Unskilled" witnessed the participation of Roberto Carlos, the former player for Brazil and Real Madrid, and Ahmed Hossam Mido, the former player for the Egyptian national team and a number of European clubs.

Ahmed Sultan moderated the session, which dealt with many axes and factors that help the Arab players in foreign professionalism, and the reasons for the players' success and continuity, in addition to the process of maturity and sacrifices made by the players on their way to reach stardom.

The Brazilian Roberto Carlos reviewed the experience of his professional career, pointing out that since his childhood, specifically at the age of 12, he dreamed of stardom and playing in the largest clubs.

He stated that this is not an easy thing, as he lives in a country with a population of more than two hundred million people, and that skill alone is not enough to make it from an average person to a player.

He stressed that the players’ career is full of many difficulties and sacrifices, including alienation from the country in which he grew up and being away from family at an early age.

He highlighted that the levels of the players now are close, and what the Arab players lack to shine and start their professional career is the real desire to go through this experience, which requires giving up the advantages and temptations that stand in the way. Roberto Carlos laughed: "I hope to repeat the 1998 World Cup final, which we lost, so that we may win it."

For his part, the Egyptian football star Ahmed Hossam Mido stressed the need for an integrated national project in the Arab countries aimed at developing the teams by sending players at an early age to professionalise abroad and refining their talents under the supervision of specialised coaches. 

Mido, who had started his foreign career at the age of 16, focused on the need for the Arab players to have ambition and motivation for professionalism. In addition to the importance of parental support, recalling that his father was the first to support his career as he always recommended that real football is found in European leagues and he must strive to reach it.

He suggested the reasons for the lack of Arab players in European stadiums due to the availability of all means of luxury for the Arab player in his country and the clubs’ adherence to talented elements and not allowing them to become professional. This also includes the high salaries they receive, which make the Arab players not think of leaving the comfort zone that they live in, stressing that the differences are very big between European and Arab football in terms of lifestyle and the quality of training.

He praised his Egyptian national team player and Liverpool team player, Mohamed Salah, and the great successes he achieved and became a role model for all players in his commitment and dealing, which led him to compete with the best players in the world. In addition to overcoming the challenges of the public, and this is what the Egyptian player misses, because the league competition is held in the presence of a limited number of fans, which makes the players unaccustomed to playing under the influence and pressure of the fans.

His Excellency Tareq Saeed Allay, Director General of the Sharjah Government Media Bureau, His Excellency Issa Hilal Al Hazami, Chairman of the Sharjah Sports Council, His Excellency Mohammed Ali Al Hammadi, Member of the Sharjah Consultative Council, Member of the Sharjah Sports Club’s Board of Directors, and Her Excellency Alia Al Suwaidi, Director of the Sharjah Government Media Bureau, attended the session. In addition to the presence of a number of officials in sports clubs, media professionals and sports enthusiasts.

It is noteworthy that the annual Ramadan Majlis, in its eleventh edition, organised by the Sharjah Press Club, hosted three sessions. The first was titled "YouTube and the Equation of Entertainment and Influence," while the second session was titled "Transgenerational Art: The Elements of Industry and Survival." The Ramadan sessions concluded with a sports session, titled "The Professional Mindset in Football ... Details of the Unskilled."