Egypt striker Mido has apologised for his touchline row with coach Hassan Shehata in the semi-finals of the African Cup of Nations.

“I want to apologize to all the fans and to my coach and I hope that nobody is still upset with me,” he said

“I just wanted to play and be part of this great accomplishment. Yes I made a mistake and I accept the punishment.”

Middo’s petulant reaction to being substituted has seen him thrown out of the tournament and landed him a six-month international ban.

“The thing is I haven’t insulted the manager, ” he told BBC Radio Five Live.

“I said why, why are you always changing me? He’s not that professional that he came to argue with me.

“I feel sorry for the fans, all the Egyptian people because they wanted me to play the final.

“I wanted to play the final because I wanted to win the tournament and I wanted to share the moment with my team-mates.

“A lot of people will feel sorry for what has happened and I do as well as it’s really disappointing.”

Mido said he will now concentrate on trying to help club side Tottenham to qualify for Europe.

“All I’m thinking about now is that I want to forget about what happened here,” he added.

“I want to come back to London and train with my Tottenham team-mates. I want to score goals and win games with Spurs and qualify for Europe.”

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