Fagrie Lakay left the country to join Egyptian side Pyramids without much fanfare. He's gone about his job quietly but efficiently. The bulky attacker has scored crucial goals for the team, with a hat-trick followed shortly by a brace recently catapulting him to near stardom across the North African nation. And true to form, in this interview with Soccer Laduma's Thomas Kwenaite, the former Cape Town City hitman remains grounded as he lets us in on the experience since joining in January last year. Lakay also talks about being booted out of the CAF Confederation Cup by Marumo Gallants, the club's history-making qualification for next year's CAF Champions League, going to war with countryman Percy Tau, and more. Read on!
Thomas Kwenaite: How would you describe your first year-and-a-half in Egypt?
Fagrie Lakay: My first year-and-a-half, I would say, has been decent. In truth, it has been good since I arrived here. I've been able to score a number of goals as an attacking player as well as (make) a few assists. I feel it has been good for me and I can build on from here going forward.
TK: Your team, Pyramids FC, finished last season second behind Zamalek but did not take part in the CAF Champions League. Instead, Al Ahly, who finished below you guys, participated in the inter-club competition and ended up winning it. How come?
FL: You see, our season in Egypt finishes much later than anyone else across Africa. So, what they do is take the mid-season standings to determine who will play CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup. Therefore, towards the deadline to submit the names of teams that have qualified for the Pan-African club competitions, both Zamalek and Al Ahly were first and second respectively, and their names were submitted. By the time the season ended, the positions no longer count.
TK: But at least this time around, you guys have qualified for the Champions League and you played a key role in that achievement!
FL: It had been a long haul. I wouldn't say I played a role, but overall, it had been a collective effort. Remember, football is a team sport. We are very proud to have qualified for the Champions League, even though the league is still in progress. But the bottom line is that the team in third (Future FC) cannot catch us as they have accumulated 58 points while we have amassed 67 (at the time of this interview), with only two games remaining.
TK: A hat-trick against Smouha in a league match on Wednesday 28 June, followed by a brace against National Bank in the Egyptian Cup quarter-final five days later is pretty good going, right?
FL: The hard work that I have been putting in as a professional athlete is paying off. As a striker, you cannot be happy if you leave the pitch without scoring. For me, things have been working out better and I do not want to get complacent and much as I'm happy about the goal returns, I am positive I am capable of getting more.
TK: How did your management secure this move?
FL: Basically, how everything happened, Paul Mitchell and Keegan Wasserfall both reached out to me and informed me that there was this team from Egypt that was interested in me. A few days later, I had a meeting with the boss (of Cape Town City, John Comitis) and I told him I'd like to leave and I felt this was a good opportunity for me to take the next step to the next level in my career. He was happy for me. I feel that we have always had a good relationship since I joined Cape Town City. I told him I've always harboured dreams of going overseas and he told me he wouldn't stand in my way. He said if that's what I wanted, he would support me and wished me all the best. So, it wasn't anything complicated – it was just easy and straightforward.
TK: What did your coach, Ehab Galal, say when you landed in Cairo?
FL: When I arrived, I met with the coach and I think it was normal, kind of, you know. I think he wanted to know me better both as a player and as a person, and I also wished the same – I also wanted to know what kind of coach he was and so forth. Basically, he asked me what did I like as a player and what did I prefer in addition to telling me the role he expected me to play within the team. He came across as a very ambitious coach but very success-driven at the same time. We talked a lot about our roles but generally about the role he wanted me to play.
TK: Tell us about life in Egypt compared to South Africa.
FL: Life in Egypt has been good so far. The main challenge for me when I moved here was the language barrier obviously, with this being an Arab country. Then I had to contend with the extremely hot weather. That is why we do most things at night here. We train during the night and our matches are played at night. But it didn't take me long to adjust and acclimatise to the conditions, largely because in South Africa we train in the morning and so I had to adjust to training at night.
TK: What were the main cultural shocks you experienced when you arrived?
FL: When you arrive in a foreign country to live or to work, you must embrace everything about the country. I can say overall, Egypt is a very good country, with brilliant infrastructure and world-class facilities. It's just the traffic. Hell, man, you ain't seen nothing yet until you come to Egypt. It's very bad. But what I've discovered about the country is that lots of people are deeply passionate about football. They love their football here and I think that's something good to see… how football can bring people together in this country.
TK: What helped you settle down quicker to life in North Africa?
FL: I wouldn't say it was difficult for me to settle down. I guess I've been fortunate in that the club helped a lot in that regard. They hired a private tutor to teach me Arabic. They also hired someone to guide and take me around the city wherever I want to go and to show me around, you know. They even hired a driver to take me anywhere. I think that was very considerate of them and I appreciated that very much. However, if I need something, I can always speak to anyone at the club because most of my teammates speak English and that makes it easier, very helpful indeed. So, whenever I need something or I want to know about something, I can always ask any of them.
TK: When Galal was appointed national coach and a new coach, Takis Gonias, arrived, did he also sit you down for similar discussions?
FL: I had a meeting with him too, you know. He coached here at the club previously and most of the players knew him personally as well as the style of play. So, basically, he sat me down and we also spoke about the role he expected me to play in his reign. It was a very fruitful meeting and, once again, I admired his professionalism and his man-management skills are spot on.
TK: Your debut match was against Al Ahli Tripoli in the CAF Confederation Cup.
FL: I was excited because it was the first game for me at a new club, new environment, new beginnings and I was eager to make an impression. We won the match 2-1 and I felt it was a decent game. Maybe I'm being too hard on myself, but I felt a bit disappointed. I would have loved to score on my debut, but unfortunately it didn't happen like that. But it was a good game overall.
TK: Then you scored a brace against ZANACO FC in the next round…
FL: I think the brace, so far, up until now, has been the best moment for me at the club. The game was played in Zambia and I received the ball in a crowded area, controlled with my right and, calm as you please, slotted under the goalkeeper with my left. The second goal I raced to connect with a through ball, evaded a couple of tackles and once again slotted the ball in. I remember since I joined the club, I have always wanted to score. I scored two and for me, it was a good feeling and we managed to win the game, and what made it sweeter was that it was away from home. As an attacking player, a striker, you always want to score, and I think the main reason they brought me here is to score goals. The goals were very good for me in terms of increasing my confidence.
TK: It must have been disappointing to be eliminated from the competition by Marumo Gallants.
FL: We were looking forward to progressing further in the tournament. They surprisingly held us to a 1-1 draw here in Cairo and we kind of felt we could turn the result around in South Africa, but they beat us 1-0 and much as we tried to draw level and force the game into a penalty shootout, it was not to be. It is part of football – you win some and lose others. We lost, but we moved on and will take that experience forward to the Champions League next season.
TK: How's the intensity of the game in Egypt compared to SA?
FL: There are elements of rhythm and possession football about Egypt. I would say the Egyptian league is very physical, a bit more intense and sometimes if the situation demands, the game can be tactical but defensively physical. In fact, if I had to describe Egyptian football in one word, I would say 'physical'!
TK: And the atmosphere when playing Zamalek and Al Ahly?
FL: The atmosphere when playing both teams is always electric because they have a lot of supporters. I mean, they are not only two of the biggest teams in Egypt but in the whole of Africa, so it's a great experience when you get to the stadium to face them. The supporters will be singing and I think this makes for a great atmosphere and as footballers we get highly motivated when there are lots of people in the stadium. I feel most times supporters always make a difference and everything is so much better. And you know, not being able to play in front of fans for some time due to COVID-19 was a bit difficult, but having fans back in the stadium makes it so much better.
TK: How did you feel facing Percy Tau as compatriots so far away from home?
FL: Facing Percy for the first time was a bit weird but at the same time good. To have to face a fellow South African and compete against each other in a different country was certainly strange, but in the end, we are both professionals and football is what brought us here. We are compatriots, yes, but there are no sentiments when we clash on the field and for 90 minutes, I think he wanted to win as badly as I also wanted to win.
TK: Do you ever find time to chat to Tau just about life in general and football?
FL: Me and Percy had a chat during the national team camp, but here in Egypt, we have never had a chance yet to link up. As you know, we play a lot of football and besides domestic competition, Ahly also engaged in the CAF Champions League, while my team was also involved in the Confederation Cup. We are both continuously traveling and quite frankly, it has been difficult to hook up, but hopefully in future, we will both make time to have coffee and catch up.
TK: What do you miss the most about Mzansi?
FL: The thing I miss the most while in Egypt is my family and my friends. You know when you get a chance to be back home, it is always a good feeling. Like they say, there is no place like home, so it's always good to spend time with family, have them around you and fuss over you. To see my friends, you know. Family is very important because they are the people who are always there to support you. It means a lot to me, it's always good, but crucially, to finally sample mom's cooking was priceless. But overall it was good to be (based) back home.
FAGRIE LAKAY FACT FILE
Date of birth: 31 May 1997
Place of birth: Manenberg, Western Cape
Jersey number: 25
Position: Striker-cum-winger
Club: Pyramids FC (Egypt)
Previous clubs: Real Stars (amateur), Santos juniors, Santos, SuperSport United, Ajax Cape Town, Bidvest Wits (both on loan), Cape Town City
Honours: 2015/16 Nedbank Cup winner, 2016/17 Nedbank Cup winner (both with SuperSport), 5 national U17 caps, 15 national U20 caps, 5 Bafana Bafana caps
