Video: Has his season ended? El Shenawy faces the threat of a severe penalty after assaulting the referee

Mohamed El Shenawy, Al Ahly’s captain, has become threatened with a harsh punishment that could reach a suspension until the end of the current Egyptian Premier League season, following an unfortunate incident on Tuesday evening at the end of the Ceramica Cleopatra match.

Al Ahly opened their matches in the championship-deciding group in the league with a disappointing 1-1 draw against Ceramica Cleopatra, raising their tally to 41 points, five points behind leaders Zamalek.

However, the match saw major refereeing controversy after referee Mahmoud Wafa refused to award Al Ahly a penalty in second-half stoppage time.

Yassin Marei, the Al Ahly player, delivered a cross into the penalty area that touched the hand of Ahmed Hany, the Ceramica Cleopatra player, but Wafa did not award a penalty despite reviewing the incident with the VAR official.

After the final whistle, a number of Al Ahly players headed to Wafa to اعتراض his controversial decision, according to video clips that spread on social media platforms.

According to one of these clips, the referee showed El Shenawy a red card for اعتراض, which inflamed the anger of Al Ahly’s goalkeeper, who did not take part in the match.

El Shenawy assaulted Wafa, but security personnel and Walid Salah El Din, the football director, stopped the keeper’s attempts to clash with the referee.

What does the regulations say?

According to the disciplinary regulations approved by the Professional Clubs Association at the beginning of the current season, El Shenawy is threatened with a suspension of 4 to 6 matches, along with financial fines.

According to the text of the fourth clause of the regulations, “assaulting referees by pushing or pulling (using the hands without violence or striking) entails a suspension of 4 to 6 matches, with a financial fine of 50,000 to 100,000 Egyptian pounds.”

Al Ahly have 5 matches remaining in the current league season, as they will play, in order, against Smouha, Pyramids, Zamalek, ENPPI, and Al Masry as part of the championship-deciding group.

This means that El Shenawy may not play for Al Ahly again this season if the suspension penalty is applied to him.

Away from the penalty, El Shenawy’s role with Al Ahly has declined in the recent period, and he has lost his starting spot in the Red team’s lineup, as Mostafa Shobeir currently controls the goalkeeper position, whether with Al Ahly or even with the Egypt national team.

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