Tottenham close on delaying Mido's arrival in Cairo – Report

English side Tottenham Hotspur are on the verge of striking a deal with Egypt to delay the arrival of striker Ahmed Hossam 'Mido' to Cairo for the African Cup of Nations, BBC Sport reported on Wednesday.

This deal came as a compromise after Egyptian officials refused a proposal by Tottenham to make the Egyptian striker play in the Premiership and the African Cup parallel, the report added.

Neither the English club nor Egypt's officials commented on the report.

Egypt said they will call the player to Cairo two weeks before the tournament kicks-off but Mido stressed he will play his side's game against Liverpool on January 14th before joining the national team camp.

Mido tops Tottenham's scorers list with seven goals that helped his side to secure the fourth spot after 17 matches.