Ahmed Elrich is back, bigger than ever!

Ahmed Elrich is back in the A-League. Great news.

But he's fat!



The dashing winger who has missed so much football due to contractual problems with his previous club in Korea, and then years in the reserves with Fulham in England, is back in the A-League.

And when I heard he was coming I couldn't wait to see him. Wondering how he'd perform after all that work in England, playing in training at least, with players of supposed higher standard.

So he comes back to Australia at the age of 26 having decided game time in the A-League is better than reseve football in England.

But he's fat!

Don't believe me? Well his brother Tarek plays for Newcastle and made the comment on Fox Sport after the recent Jets/Phoenix game.

And when you saw the two lads standing next to each other, Ahmed's weight could not be hidden.

How can a professional player be so overweight? Did he leave Fulham and do a Boony on the flight, remember it's abit further to NZ, so maybe chance to stack on a bit more.

Steve Laybutt, playing defence, can get away with a little excess it seems.
Mario Jardel playing striker can't.
Carlos Hernandez has lost heaps, but another professional who came hugely overweight.
How can a dashing winger like Elrich carry excess, and losing it so quickly, how will that affect him?

Presumably Ahmed was training pre-season etc with Fulham so you would think he would have arrived in reasonable, if not peak condition.

Given he's been here for three weeks, and only started on the weekend, how fat was he when he arrived?

Anyway let's hope he can shift the weight. But for me it's disappointing as it suggests he's way way off peak fitness and with the A-League so short, we may not see the best of him for another year.

Me thinks the Phoenix and A-League fans have been had!