Even though the suspension of domestic activity looks to have taken its toll on the game in Egypt, it may well turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the national team in the future.

Clubs suffering financial predicaments, players losing the job they rely on to bring home the bacon and lack of competitive action threatening to derail the run of the national side, have all been cited as adverse effects for the absence of football.

It is undeniable that all the aforementioned ramifications of the turmoil - that hit Egypt in general and the football landscape in specific - are drastic, and authorities should get their act together to get the game back on track.

But since we are now stuck in a predicament where football on the wane, positives could still be taken from the ordeal…how??

Pundits and fans alike had usually been bemoaning the scarcity of our foreign-based footballers, and that Egyptians will never be able to produce a Didier Drogba or a Samuel Eto’o.

Despite securing an unprecedented three Africa Cup of Nations titles in a row with a local-based team, it is undoubted that increasing the number of Egyptian players overseas will reflect dramatically on the national team.

In the past, players were not really lured into playing abroad, with the exception of a handful - including the likes of Mido, Mohamed Zidan and Ahmed Hassan - who were determined to make a name for themselves in Europe and did.

Excuses like homesickness, the language barrier or the inability to adapt to a new environment in addition to the lack of requisite professionalism dissuaded many to have new overseas adventures.

Moreover, should players become able to overcome their home passion and move abroad, they were not likely to remain more than a year and the examples in this regard are quite myriad.

Although most of these factors have not changed, the fact that Egyptian players will be unable to play football on a regular basis would prompt many to leave the country and endure all potential difficulties.

Furthermore, they will not be away from the limelight in their homeland as the situation was a decade ago, thanks to the internet and the numerous emerging TV channels, so their ‘star’ status should remain intact.

In the space of one year, Ahmed Hegazi moved to the Serie A, Mohamed Salah joined Swiss champions Basel, Mohamed Al-Nenni is also expected to leave, not to mention that more than 15 Egyptians are now playing at Belgium with Lierse or third-tier Turnhout.

It would have been totally the other way around if the league was on, for sure the cash-strapped clubs wouldn't have released players so easily to generate much needed revenues, plus footballers themselves could have well opted to remain at home.

The future of the game in Egypt remains in real doubt amid the ongoing political turbulence, which for sure will have a negative impact on the country for several years to come.

However, players would now be forced to have the needed ambition to ply their trade abroad and even if the local scene is quite grim, hopefully the national team could make amends.