The 'Special One' claimed Ramadan was having a negative
influence
Jose Mourinho has come under fire once again after the
head of the Union for the Communities and Organisations of Islam in
Italy (UCOII), Mohamed Nour Dachan, slammed the Inter coach for his
recent comments relating to Sulley Muntari and
Ramadan.
The 'Special One' replaced the Ghana midfielder after 30 minutes
following a poor showing on the pitch. Mourinho claimed Ramadan was
having a negative influence on Muntari who practices Islam.
"Muntari had some problems related to Ramadan - perhaps with this
heat it's not good for him to be doing this [fasting]," Mourinho
told reporters after the game.
"Ramadan has not arrived at the ideal moment for a player to play a
football match."
The comments have shocked the Islam world and have caused a
considerable storm of criticism as the Portuguese coach finds
himself caught up in another row.
"I think Mourinho should talk less," Dachan told La Repubblica. "A player who
practices Islam does not perform less on the pitch. We know that
medicine in Sport and mental stability, and psychology make players
perform well.
"A player who is Christian, Hebrew or Muslim will have a tranquil
mind and will always perform better on the pitch." Muslims fast
between daylight hours during Ramadan, abstaining from food and
drink from dawn until dusk.
This means Muntari would have had to play games in searing
temperatures without adequate hydration. Experts claim sportsmen
and women can suffer if they do not receive good hydration during
hard physical exertion.
Goal.com
caught up with leading personal trainer and nutritionist Giulio
Scala who has worked alongside many professional sportsmen and
women as well as elite athletes.
Scala claims fasting can have a big impact on the performance of
players when on the pitch. "A one per cent decrease in hydration
can affect endurance by up to 20 per cent," Scala told Goal.com.
"Players
performances will decrease due to dehydration as will aerobic
capacity, strength and power.
"It would be worse during evening matches as the player would have
gone up to 12 or more hours without any food. That means a decrease
in energy and depleted glycogen levels.
"A player's capacity physically and mentally for him to work
at his optimum for 90 minutes would be highly affected due to
inadequate nutrition."
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