Manuel Jose will be hoping his players gel into the new system as defending champions Ahly host Gouna at Cairo Stadium in the Egyptian Premier League on Sunday. The Portuguese tactician has abandoned his preferred 3-5-2 formation in favour of a more attacking 4-4-2 strategy as he seeks to make the most of the abundance of attacking talents at his disposal. The arrival of attacking midfielders Abdallah El-Saied and Walid Soliman led Jose to deploy them as wingers behind a striking duo. Soliman unsettled Petrojet's defence with his dribbling skills but he was replaced during the interval because of injury as the hosts came from behind twice to hold Ahly, who looked toothless after the break, to a 2-2 draw in Suez. El-Saied was also lively but the big-spending Red Devils, who have four points from two games, still looked in need of more harmony to regain their form after stunningly exiting the CAF Champions League and Egypt Cup in less than a week last month. “There is a still long way to go. We will correct all the mistakes we did lately,” Ahly assistant coach Mohamed Youssef said following the draw with Petrojet. “The team's displays will notably improve in the coming period.” The failure of Ahly's strikers to impress has also left Jose, who is in his third stint with the Cairo giants, with a selection headache upfront. Emad Meteb is likely to retain his regular place upfront but his partner is not yet determined. Mauritania's Dominique Da Silva and newly-arrived frontman Fabio Junior of Brazil have yet to win over the fans after some disappointing displays. Playmaker Mohamed Abou-Treika, who is way past his prime, might be fielded as a deep-lying forward. Ahly will have to do without Soliman, who opened the scoring against Petrojet with a superb left-foot volley, after he picked up a groin injury. New wing-back Ahmed Shedid, who made a minimal impact when he was introduced in the second half against Petrojet, was left out of the team's 18-man squad. In Sunday's other matches, Masry will be looking to maintain their fine run at the expense of El-Entag El-Harby while Wadi Degla will be hoping to make it two wins out of two when they play Haras El-Hodoud. Petrojet face Masr lil Maqassa and Smouha host Arab Contractors in Alexandria.
