CAIRO: Right-back Ahmed Ghanem ended speculation regarding his future after signing a three-year contract extension with Zamalek on Wednesday.
Widespread reports linked Ghanem, whose previous deal was due to expire at the end of the season, with a move to Zamalek’s arch-rivals Ahly.
The Cairo giants re-signed their former right-back Mohamed Abdullah to make up for the potential loss of Ghanem, who eventually opted to stay put.
"My financial demands were not excessive as some reports have said," the 24-year-old told FilGoal.com.
"I agreed to extend my contract once I sat down with Zamalek’s officials."
Ghanem was given a new lease of life following the appointment of coach Hossam Hassan in November last year.
He became the team’s regular right-back in a new 4-4-2 formation used by Egypt’s all-time leading scorer.
He came in for fierce criticism though after his errors helped Ahly score in stoppage time to hold Zamalek to a 3-3 draw in the Cairo derby earlier this month.
"Coach Hassan told me the club would let me leave if I received a good European offer in the summer," Ghanem, who played for Polish side Legia Warszawa in 2005 and 2006, added.
