Hassan Shehata is a national treasure. While many of the coaches that arrived in Ghana to contest this year's African Cup of Nations have either been sacked or resigned, Shehata's position as Egypt's coach is secure barring complete disaster in the second round of qualification for Africa's World Cup. Nevertheless, despite establishing his country as the class of Africa, the Pharaohs still do not receive the respect they deserve. Their achievements cannot be ignored in Africa – they retained the trophy having won in vastly different styles, yet Shehata and his players still fly under many radars and that is just how the mild-mannered tactician likes it. Were Shehata to turn up in London for example, hardly anyone would recognise him, but he is already the second most successful coach in African history - only the great Charles Kumi Gyamfi is ahead of him. They are the only coaches to have retained the African Cup of Nations. It took more than four decades for the feat to be repeated and on both occasions it was accomplished by Africans, who happened to be great players as well.

Egypt's infrastructure and organisation is second to none in Africa. They built on their success in 2006 on home soil. Shehata established that he is a coach of rare ability. He changed the system from the defensive formation that won the African Cup of Nations in Egypt on penalties, despite the now famous spat between Shehata and his star player Ahmed Hossam Hussein Abdelhamid - Mido. Shehata is generous in his assessment of European football clubs. Africa's greatest modern tactician gave Empower-Sport Magazine an interview. “I think they do, because the leagues in any country in Europe respect African football,” said Shehata. “I think that all clubs think that the players from Africa are good. Now we say too many players from too many countries are playing in England. Many players from Africa now play in big, big clubs in Europe. When a player from Africa plays in Europe this usually means European [style] football, but when come to you in Africa it means playing like Africa plays you know. It’s different playing in Africa and playing in Europe.”

The country's President, Hosni Mubarak, not only telephoned him to congratulate him after he led Egypt to success in 2006, but also personally presented him with his medal. Shehata is that rare breed - an excellent coach who was also a gifted player. He played in three African Cup of Nations in 1974, 76 and 80. His career began and ended with El-Zamalek - fittingly the team he got his break in coaching at too. Shehata was one of the first Egyptian footballers to play outside of Egypt, albeit in Kuwait for three seasons. He returned to Zamalek in 1972 and played for them until he hung up his boots in 1983. Shehata scored eighty-eight goals for the club. He won the Egyptian Cup thrice with Zamalek in 1975, 77 and 79, but only managed to claim a winners' medal once in the league in 1978. Shehata holds the distinction of being the only Egyptian to win the Asian Player of the Year in 1970. He was twice top scorer in the Egyptian league and came third in the African Player of the Year award in 1974. Shehata won other individual awards as a player and represented the Pharaohs between 1972-80, scoring four times in the African Cup of Nations, but that trophy eluded him as a player. He more than made up for the disappointment as a coach.

No sooner had Shehata ended his distinguished playing career than he began coaching. He began with Zamalek's Under-20 team and learned his trade gradually, including two spells as assistant first team coach of Zamalek. He coached in the United Arab Emirates: Sudan and Oman before getting his first break as head coach of an Egyptian team Al-Ittihad in 1992. He returned to Oman the following season. In 1996 he took charge of another Egyptian side - Menia and began an amazing run of success. He coached Menia to promotion in his first season there and promptly left. In four seasons he managed as many clubs, winning promotion to Egypt's first division with three of them - Menia: Sharqueya and Suez.

This brought him to the attention of the Pharaohs. Shehata was appointed coach of Egypt's Under-20 team in 2001. He left in 2003, having established both his credentials and those of the Young Pharaohs. His young charges won the African Cup of Nations for their age group and reached the quarter-final of the Under-20 World Cup. Shehata returned to club management with Mekawleen for the season of 2003-04. They won the Egyptian Cup and national Supercup as well. Shehata was ready to test his credentials against the best in the continent. He got his chance with sacking of Marco Tardelli in January 2005. Shehata has established his reputation in the Cup of Nations, but the challenge of achieving that success on the world stage remains. This will be difficult as Africa still only has five places in the World Cup finals. Last time Egypt was drawn in a very difficult group that included Cameroun and eventual finalist la Côte d'Ivoire.

Africa only has five automatic places in the World Cup out of thirty-two - the result of allocation of places that has favoured the federations of Europe and South America in particular throughout the history of the World Cup. It has led many African nations to prioritise their continental tournament ahead of the World Cup. The fantastic Ghana side of the 1960s took that decision. The Chief Executive Officer of South Africa's Local Organising Committee, Dr Danny Jordaan expects to see happen again even in 2010. Nevertheless, Jordaan is optimistic regarding an African team's chance of winning the World Cup itself. “I think so, but an African team will be tired,” he says. “You have the African Cup of Nations in January and February. Then you have to go back to your clubs until around May and at the end of May they have a vacation and on eleventh of June the World Cup starts. It is one of the issues about the African Cup of Nations and in that case I think some of those countries need to take a decision about which to prioritise because you may have burn-out by the time of the World Cup.”

Europe boasts thirteen automatic places at the World Cup, despite the same number of federations as Africa and consequently has far greater experience in the World Cup, which is reflected in their rankings. Despite proving themselves to be the best in Africa - winning the African Cup of Nations twice consecutively - Egypt is not the top ranked African team and failing to qualify for Germany's world Cup in 2006 is not the reason. Cameroun didn't make it either, yet the Indomitable Lions have consistently been ranked ahead of the Pharaohs, despite Egypt beating them twice in Ghana.

Shehata unleashed an African version of total football in Ghana. In their first match in Kumasi they played against Otto Pfister's Cameroun - a team boasting the prolific talents of Samuel Eto'o, who was then on his way to breaking Ivorian great Laurent Pokou's four decades old goal-scoring record in the finals of the African Cup of Nations. The defensive style that brought success in Egypt in 2006 was replaced by a free-flowing attacking style with players who were comfortable in possession and attacked and defended as a team. Bar goalkeeper Tawfik al-Hadary they could score from any position. They opened their account in fine style - a 4-2 mauling of Cameroun. An easy 3-0 victory over Sudan ensured that a draw against Zambia was enough to top the group. A 2-1 defeat of Luís Oliveira Gonçalves' Angola set up a semi-final against many pundits' favourites la Côte d'Ivoire. Gérard Gili's team had reached the semi-final without a real test. They topped their group - a difficult one that consisted of Nigeria, Mali and Benin. Both Mali and Nigeria had never failed to reach the semi-finals when they qualified for the finals of the tournament. The Ivorians paid scant regard to African football history. Mali went home after the group stage and the Super-Eagles lost their quarter-final to Ghana. Meanwhile, the Ivorians thrashed Guinea, who were still missing their inspirational captain Pascal Feindounou through suspension, 5-0 in the quarter-final. This set up a chance for the beaten finalists of the 2006 African Cup of Nations to claim revenge against Shehata's impressive Pharaohs. This correspondent was one of the few who predicted that Egypt would upset the odds and beat the in-form Ivorians, but I didn't expect a 4-1 thrashing. And so to Accra's Ohene Djan Stadium and the chance for Shehata to establish that he wasn't a good African coach - he was a great one.

Cameroun stood in the way again, but this time Shehata had to prepare his side to bear the mantle of favourites. Once again Egypt was the better side, but the final was not the spectacle of attacking football that Kumasi's Baba Yara Stadium had the privilege of hosting almost three weeks earlier. The Pharaohs should have won more comfortably, but a mistake from veteran Camerounian captain Rigobert Song, who was setting a new record for matches played in the finals of the African Cup of Nations gifted possession to substitute Mohamed Zidan who squared the ball to the supremely gifted attacking midfielder Mohamed Aboutreika. Español's Camerounian international goalkeeper, Idriss Carlos Kameni had been a superb last barrier throughout the tournament. His heroics kept his team in the final longer than they deserved, but not even he could deny Aboutreika. It was the decisive goal that gave Egypt the trophy and Shehata a place in African football history.

Shehata may not have won the respect of Europeans - yet, - but he is an icon, not only in his native Egypt, but throughout Africa. He is already the second best coach the continent has ever produced and should have the opportunity to at least equal the achievement of the greatest. Whether he guides the Pharaohs to an unprecedented third consecutive triumph or not in Angola in February 2010, he has already won the respect of Africa's greatest ever coach, Charles Kumi Gyamfi. “He is a good coach,” Gyamfi told Empower-Sport Magazine. “I think he is. I don’t know him, but he is the only African who has won it twice apart from me. I sit there during their games and I watched his coaching closely. He has the great players playing for him. That was something. He is a very good coach.”