Midfielder of the Egyptian national football team Ramadan Sobhy has denied reports of a rift with head coach Hector Cuper, assuring that he respects all decisions by the coach.
“I always accept all coach decisions. I was sad to quit the game against Uganda at this stage.” Sobhy said Thursday. “
The 19-year-old sat on the bench during Egypt's 1-0 win over Ghana on Wednesday, leading to speculation that Cuper decided to punish the young midfielder for his behavior in the Uganda game earlier last week, which Egypt won 1-0.
Stock City's midfielder reportedly expressed his displeasure over Cuper's decision to replace him during the Uganda game, kicking a water bottle while exiting the pitch at the 70th minute.
However, Sobhi denied that there is a rift with Cuper, insisting that he was merely upset at not being allowed to continue the game.
 “I was worried about the team's fate in the tournament. The score was 0-0 and we were desperate to win the game to keep our chances alive in the competition.”
The former Ahly player insisted that the former Inter-Milan manager is a “great coach” and that all the players respect his decisions and his vision.
“I had the desire to complete the game to help the team win, so I appeared angry.” 
“Our target is to win all the games in this tournament,” said Sobhi. “It is not important who will start or who will sit on the bench. Our priority is only to win.”
Egypt will have a tough clash on Sunday when they face Morocco in the tournament's quarter-finals.