 In 2000 , at the age of 17 , Mido signed for Gent . Initially , he suffered from homesickness , and returned to Egypt shortly after arriving in Belgium , only staying at his father 's vehement insistence . Working hard to fight his reservations , Mido eventually overcame them , in his own words gaining " the mentality of a pro " . Gent manager Patrick Remy was impressed by Mido 's handling of the issue and promoted him to the first team in September 2000 , placing him at first on the substitutes ' bench . However , Mido continued to impress Remy , who commented on his " responsibilities ... [ and ] great technical capabilities " . He eventually became a first @-@ team regular , and made his league debut on 27 August 2000 in a 4 – 1 away win against Eendracht <unk> . On 2 October 2000 , he scored his first goal in a 2 – 1 home win against Standard Liège . His European debut came on 12 September 2000 , where Gent suffered a 6 – 0 home defeat to Ajax . He became a fan favourite , and was praised by the Belgian press at the end of the season . Mido went on to win the Belgian Ebony Shoe in 2001 as the best African player in the Belgian First Division , as well as being named the Belgian " Discovery of the Year " . As he attracted interest from major clubs both in Belgium and abroad , he ended the season with a powerful performance against Royal Antwerp , scoring one of Gent 's goals in a 3 – 1 win and setting up the other two . Two years later , Remy described the match to an Egyptian journalist , saying that " Mido did everything . " He finished the season with 11 goals from 21 matches , as Gent finished fifth , earning them a spot in the following season of the UEFA Intertoto Cup . 
