The former Ismaili man joined Ahli from Turkish side Trabzonspor last summer.

He had to play second-fiddle to Angolan winger Gilberto, who has been one of the mainstays of Ahli's squad during the past few years.

"I can't bear it (staying on the bench) anymore," Moawad told Modern Sport following Ahli's 2-1 victory over Ittihad.

"I'm not the kind of player who just cares about earning money no matter he is playing or not. I'm not used to having such a peripheral role.

"Being out of action has heavily affected my form and I lost my place in Egypt's squad."

The 29-year-old was part of the Pharaohs' squad that won a second successive African Cup of Nations in 2008.

Ahli coach Manuel Jose further infuriated Moawad by introducing central defender Mohamed Samir instead of Gilberto in the second half of the win over Ittihad.

"Gilberto always plays regularly even if he is not performing well and when Jose replaced him, he fielded Samir while I was sitting on the bench," Moawad added.

"Sometimes players make a wrong choice and I think I did that. I failed to adapt to life at Ahli."

Hot Water

Moawad landed himself in hot water with Ahli as the club immediately decided to impose an undisclosed fine on him.

"All players have to follow the club's code of ethics. Otherwise, they will be heavily fined," Ahli assistant coach Hossam Al-Badri said.

Ahli striker Ahmed Hassan Farag was also fined for protesting against the technical staff’s decision to leave him out of the squad facing Ittihad.

Farag is frustrated after being given limited opportunities since joining from Ghazl Mahalla last summer.

"I will leave at the end of the season even if I had to join Olympic," the 26-year-old told Goal FM.

"When I watch my goals with Mahalla I bemoan my current position at Ahli."

The majority of Ahli's summer arrivals failed to convince Jose that they were good enough to play on a regular basis.

Qatari winger Hussein Yasser and midfielder Hussein Ali said more than once they were unhappy with lack of first-team opportunities.