- Mohamed El-Munir said 'people at the moment are just looking to make money, not looking to make football better'
- June's cup final was marred by the sight of players ducking to the sound of nearby gunshots
LOS ANGELES: Watching on a screen more than 5,000 miles from Zawiya, Mohamed El-Munir shook his head at the scenes unfolding in his homeland.
It鈥檚 seven years since El-Munir left Libya to pursue his professional career shortly after the strife of the civil war began. It was a journey which took him to eastern Europe and then, last winter, Orlando, Florida. But the left-back has never forgotten his roots.
He remains an avid follower of Libyan football and he was deeply disturbed by the scenes in June鈥檚 cup final. The sight of players ducking to the sound of nearby gunshots in the dying minutes at Al-Khums Stadium was disturbing enough, but from a purely footballing standpoint, so too was Al-Hilal鈥檚 players walking off the pitch in protest at the refereeing.
For El-Munir, it was symptomatic of the lack of leadership in the Libyan game. The 26-year-old has grown jaded with the motives and administrative skills of those running the country鈥檚 clubs and football federation. As FIFA prepare to lift the ban on international matches in Libya, El-Munir has called for a massive overhaul to ensure homegrown talent can flourish.
鈥淚鈥檓 still watching the league and I really feel sorry for my footballer friends and the supporters. No-one takes responsibility,鈥� said the Libyan international.
鈥淭hey don鈥檛 want to punish clubs or punish players and they can鈥檛 control it. I watched the cup final a few weeks ago and I鈥檝e never seen anything like it. These kind of things need to be stopped. You need to put in rules that everyone respects.
鈥淲e need the right people in the right positions who want to work and make something good. The people at the moment are just looking to make money, not looking to make football better.鈥�
El-Munir, below, got his first-team break after coming through the ranks at Al-Ittihad, but left Tripoli when the war forced the suspension of domestic football 鈥� joining Serbian outfit Jagodina. It was the start of a successful club career overseas after winning the Serbian cup with Jagodina and then Partizan Belgrade, before he agreed a switch to MLS last December.
But he is convinced that talented homegrown players have little choice than to follow his example if they are to fulfil their potential, due to the lack of training or structure available.
鈥淚 played in Libya until I was 18 and I鈥檓 telling you we have a very good quality of league. It鈥檚 just they need discipline,鈥� he said.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the big difference between the Arab and European players. They have a lot of quality, but lack discipline. It鈥檚 a problem for the clubs, they should bring the right people in to make sure these young players know that discipline comes before quality.
鈥淲ith talent you can play for a few years, but if you are not disciplined, by the time you get to 26-27, you can鈥檛 train properly and can鈥檛 play anywhere else.鈥�
If FIFA do allow the Mediterranean Knights to play home games inside Libya for the first time since 2013 though, it will represent a major boost to the country鈥檚 footballing scene. Coupled with the appointment of former Kenya boss Adel Amrouche as the new national team manager, there should be added momentum to the African Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.
After thrashing the Seychelles 5-1 in their opening qualifier, Libya currently sit atop South Africa and Nigeria in their bid to reach the finals for the first time since 2012. After such a bloody and violent recent history, El Munir 鈥� who has won 16 caps for his country 鈥� knows what a tonic that would be for Libya.
鈥淚 know the national team has brought in a new coach and hopefully we can get our preparations right because we have a good chance.
鈥淏efore the war started in our country, we reached the Africa Cup and we can do it again now. I hope we can do it this year for the people who are suffering because they need everything they can get to make them happy.
鈥淭o go to the World Cup or Africa Cup brings a lot of joy and happiness to the people. I hope that someday, if it鈥檚 not me, there will be soccer players who can do this.鈥�
El-Munir became a trailblazer last December when he agreed to become the first Libyan to play in MLS after penning a deal at Orlando City.
It has been a tough season for Orlando, who lie third bottom in the MLS Eastern Conference, endured a nine-game losing streak between May and July and replaced sacked manager Jason Kreis with former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder James O鈥機onnor in June.
However, on a personal level, El-Munir feels at home in the US after a contract dispute at former club Partisan Belgrade forced him to look for new employers.
鈥淭here were some clubs in Sweden and France interested, but my agent has good connections with another agent who is friends with Niki [Niki Budalic, Orlando general manager],鈥� said El-Munir.
鈥淭hey were asking for players in a couple of positions and left-back was one of them. That鈥檚 how the idea came and they said I was going to be free from my contract.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a new challenge, MLS is not an easy league, but for me, I鈥檝e really enjoyed it and I think I鈥檝e done well with it.
鈥淚 have a contract for another year as an option. I鈥檓 happy here and I don鈥檛 have a problem staying.鈥�
MLS鈥� profile has been boosted over recent months by the arrivals of Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic 鈥� the latter bagging a hat-trick in a 4-3 win for LA Galaxy over Orlando last month.
But El-Munir has been impressed with MLS for more than just the big names.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not just the superstar players. In every team you find really good young players who are making a big difference. The combination is helping the league to improve, to be better quality and faster,鈥� he added.
鈥淭here are different champions in MLS every year too. It鈥檚 not like in Europe where you can predict who will be champions. Everyone has a chance to win the league and the cup.鈥�