Coach Martin Lasarte has apologized to Ahly's fans following the team's catastrophic display in a stunning 5-0 loss at Mamelodi Sundowns, which virtually ended their hopes to pursue a ninth African Champions League title. The Egyptian giants suffered their worst continental defeat after being blown away by the South African champions in the first leg of the Champions League quarter finals. "We didn't play a good game. There is nothing much to say we need to work a lot," Lasarte told the post match press conference. Ahly – who reached the finals in the two previous years but lost on both occasions – were hoping to end that jinx to extend record and claim their first title since 2013. "I am sorry, we feel very embarrassed. We will not talk in the upcoming period and we will just focus on the work ahead," Lasarte added. "We watched a lot of games of our opponents but things didn't go our way during the game. This is football. Saad Samir's injury has affected us especially that he has a very big experience." The 30-year old defender was stretched off in the 19th minute after colliding with Sundowns keeper Denis Onyango. He is set to undergo scans to determine how long he will be out. Ahly will be eyeing a miracle to go through when they host Sundowns in the return leg on 13 April. (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)
