"After Argentina, who will we face? We'll face Mona El-Shazly," a sarcastic meme that spread on social media among Egyptian fans on the eve of the Argentina match in the Round of 16 of the World Cup. Amid the strength of the Argentine team and its stars, the public joked by nominating Egyptian TV host Mona El-Shazly as a potential opponent, after exiting the World Cup, by hosting the Pharaohs' players on her entertainment show.

The show 'With You, Mona El-Shazly' is one of the most prominent entertainment programs in Egypt, currently airing on ON channel. The program hosts individuals who have topped search engines or trends following personal achievements or issues that have occupied public opinion.

With the continuation of official and public celebration of the Egyptian national team, and the intense media appearances of its players and coaching staff since their arrival in Egypt last Friday, the meme was reused in the form: 'Who will the team face after Mona El-Shazly?' to which others replied: 'So we'll play Esaad Younes in the quarter-finals.'

Egyptian international Emam Ashour with his family during celebrations with fans (Egyptian Football Association)

Since the return of the Egyptian national team after its elimination in the famous match against Argentina, losing 2-3, local media have not stopped celebrating the players, coaching staff, and administration through multiple interviews that flooded the media. But what initially seemed like deserved recognition soon turned into material for criticism and mockery, due to what was described as 'excessive joy' and celebrating an incomplete achievement, although exceptional in some respects.

The Pharaohs' reaching the Round of 16 is the best achievement for the Egyptian national team in the World Cup, as they had never advanced past the group stage in their three previous participations in 1934, 1990, and 2018, nor had they ever achieved a win in their history.

Fan criticism began with the honoring ceremony in the New Alamein City, where many felt the reception was more official than popular, and that the absence of fans weakened the joy of the World Cup achievement.

As the honoring moved to Cairo Stadium, the debate continued; some felt the fan scene fulfilled the purpose, but at the same time opened the door to questions about the usefulness of exaggerated celebrations after being eliminated from the competition.

Thousands of Egyptian fans celebrated their national team at Cairo Stadium on Monday evening, honoring its results in the World Cup. The Egyptian national team players and coaching staff entered the pitch on an open-top bus to greet the attending fans, before moving on to singing and celebrations with the fans.

However, some criticism was raised about the successive celebrations over the past days, which seemed exaggerated to some. Social media platforms saw expressions of these criticisms, with Egyptian artists and followers joining in.

Egypt national team head coach Hossam Hassan with TV host Mona El-Shazly (ON channel Facebook page)

Artist Ahmed El-Saadani criticized the Cairo Stadium celebration, calling for its cancellation, noting that the honoring by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the intense media appearances were sufficient, explaining that 'things are getting too messy,' indicating that matters have lost their seriousness and turned into exaggeration.

Artist Taha Desouky also expressed his displeasure with the content of questions and discussions with national team players and coaching staff on several TV programs, stressing that this opportunity should have been used to present dialogues befitting the achievement made by the team.

Desouky wrote on his Facebook account: 'We haven't even finished writing questions and we'll spend it in pleasure, whether it happened or not, and everyone wants to catch the trend, and we are living in a big mulukhiya mess like the one made for a wedding procession.'

Several other platform users expressed the same criticisms in their posts through disapproval and sarcasm. One female fan commented on the Cairo Stadium event: 'The joy is nice... and the party is beautiful... but they should reduce the Mona El-Shazly interviews.'

While the appearance of head coach Hossam Hassan with the famous TV host received great interaction, one comment said: 'There are still the rest of the players, each with his wife, with Mona El-Shazly, and still Esaad Younes and a big story,' indicating an expected continuation of media appearances.

Meanwhile, one user denounced the exaggeration of the players' media presence by asking: 'Is there any hope that when I enter social media I won't find the players, their families, and their programs, and find something useful?'

The honoring of the Egyptian national team for its World Cup achievement turned into material for criticism and mockery (Egyptian Football Association)

But sports critic Ayman Horeidi does not agree with these criticisms, telling Asharq Al-Awsat: 'The Egyptian national team deserves the honoring for its performance in the World Cup. The honoring is important to boost the players' morale before upcoming international engagements, and to emphasize the return of confidence in the team, which now possesses outstanding elements expected to bring Egypt back to the podium at the continental level, in addition to writing new history in the next World Cup.'

He continued: 'I think the honoring proved that the Egyptian fans were craving the Pharaohs' return to strong performance. Moreover, celebrating the team itself carries a message to the players and places great responsibility on them in the coming period, because they are required to deliver stronger performances and results that make everyone happy.'

In contrast, sports critic Mustafa Saber believes the problem is not the celebration, but the exaggeration and its transformation into a sense of satisfaction or ignoring the mistakes that still need improvement. He added to Asharq Al-Awsat: 'Celebrating the team is natural after a historic achievement, and fans have the right to celebrate their team, and this support gives players a great moral boost. But at the same time, objective technical criticism must continue so that the team can continue its successes.'

Regarding the media appearances of players, he explains: 'The team achieved an exceptional achievement, and it is natural for there to be media attention. But at the same time, this appearance must be organized and studied so as not to distract the players, and regulated to serve the team's interest. The priority in the next phase should be preparing for the future, with calculated media communication that maintains the fans' connection to the team without excess.'