Mehmed Ali’s true rival was Ottoman grand vizier Mehmed Husrev Pasha, not the Sultan.

Evidence

If one sees Mehmed Ali as a governor of an Ottoman province who was constantly concerned about his position within the Empire and was anxious about the future of his family after his death, as he himself certainly was, then the person who appears as the Pasha’s nemesis whom he spent all his life fighting was not Sultan Mahmud, not even Lord Palmerston, the British Foreign Secretary (to whom we will turn shortly), but Mehmed Husrev Pasha, his old enemy whom he first encountered in 1801 and who since then had been appointed as governor of various provinces in Anatolia and Rumelia, as Grand Admiral of the Ottoman navy, who eventually became Grand Vizier more than once in his long career of public service. In fact, the careers and mentalities of both men appear remarkably similar: both were keen, yet distant, observers of the European scene; both were interested in military reform; and both were concerned about the fate of the Empire and eager to help defend it. But whereas Mehmed Ali succeeded in making Egypt into his own fief and in exploiting it for himself and his family while at the same time thinking that he was thus offering a model of how the Empire could be reformed, Husrev was much less fortunate. He never had a wealthy province like Mehmed Ali’s on which to try out on a small scale his ideas of how to rejuvenate the Empire, and while being a protégé of reform-minded officials, he was never as successful as the Egyptian Pasha was in putting his ideas of military refom into practice, this in spite of occupying very senior posts in the Empire’s military and civilian administration during his long and active career. While there were many obstacles that stood in Husrev’s way of implementing his ideas, one of the most important was Mehmed Ali himself. This feeling of animosity was heartily reciprocated since the Egyptian Pasha was convinced that Husrev was leading a faction in Istanbul that was determined to thwart his efforts and to deny him the fruits of his various military victories over the Sultan’s armies. — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 1553

Categorization

• XREF: Directly speaks to the reader’s stated interest in Ottoman Pashas as rivals to Egypt’s army; reframes Egyptian history within an Ottoman imperial frame. — connects to: Mustafa Rasid Pasha, not Husrev, ultimately defeated Mehmed Ali; Personal animosity between Husrev and Mehmed Ali crippled Ottoman-Egyptian naval cooperation; Ottoman sultans distrusted Mehmed Ali from his earliest years in power (+2 more)
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 1553

Broader Connections

• Personal animosity between Husrev and Mehmed Ali crippled Ottoman-Egyptian naval cooperation #corroborates (0.80)
• Mehmed Ali’s wars may be internal Ottoman power struggles rather than nationalist bids #corroborates (0.60) — Khaled Fahmy, All the Pasha_s Men_ Mehmed Ali, his…, 199
• The Sultan repeatedly plotted to depose Mehmed Ali even after his victories #contradicts (0.50)
• Ottoman sultans distrusted Mehmed Ali from his earliest years in power #qualifies (0.40)