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The agony and the ecstasy: Defiant Ahly end year on high note Newly-crowned African champions Ahly overcome host of recent setbacks and obstacles to clinch the African continent's most prestigious title
A defiant Ahly, replicating past heroics, left their African challengers trailing in their wake after winning the prestigious Champions League title to end a turbulent 2012 on a high note. The Red Devils were hardly expected to add to their record haul of six Champions League titles after encountering numerous problems this year, which culminated in a dispute with their own hardcore supporters. In February, Ahly players ran for their lives after an ugly pitch invasion by thousands of Masry supporters left over 70 Ahly fans dead in Port Said Stadium. The incident sent shockwaves across Egypt and forced the indefinite suspension of all domestic football activity. Ahly consequently had to endure hard times, but they eventually emerged unscathed towards the end of the year, beating the odds to win the Champions League after a 3-2 aggregate win over Tunisian side Esperance. "In my opinion, it's the most precious trophy in the history of the club, given the hard situations we faced over the past few months," assistant coach Mohamed Youssef said after Ahly beat Esperance 2-1 away from home in Saturday's second leg. Unprecedented dispute Emotionally distraught after witnessing Egypt's worst-ever football disaster, several Ahly stars had initially said they would hang up their boots. They reversed their decision a few days later, however, paving the way for a potential dispute with the Ultras Ahlawy, a group of die-hard fans several of whose members were killed in the Port Said disaster. Maintaining a rigid stance, the Ultras Ahlawy had insisted they would not allow any resumption of domestic football unless the tragedy's perpetrators were brought to justice. At one point they went so far as to storm Ahly club headquarters and the premises of the Egyptian Football Association. They had no reservations about Ahly's participation in the Champions League, though, believing that anger should be directed at the "corrupt officials" running Egyptian football. The paradox saw the Ultras Ahlawy support their team in the Champions League, but vehemently attack them when they decided to participate in local games. The unprecedented dispute reached a climax in September when Ahly agreed to face ENPPI in the Egyptian Super Cup, the season's annual curtain-raiser. The decision stoked tensions and gave the Ultras Ahlawy more ammunition in their bid to stop the resumption of football activity. They failed in their attempt to force authorities to call off the game, despite explicitly warning that they would storm the stadium in which the match was set to take place. They contented themselves with hurling accusations against their players, who they accused of "abandoning the rights of the Port Said martyrs." Iconic footballer Mohamed Abou-Treika was the only player to be spared their wrath, having skipped the match – prompting Ahly to suspend him for two months. "This trophy goes to the families and souls of the Port Said martyrs," Ahly playmaker Abdallah El-Saied said following the win over Esperance. The Ultras Ahlawy voiced satisfaction with Ahly's Champions League triumph, but there are no signs that they plan to soften their stance on domestic football resumption anytime soon. Footballing problem Ahly were also forced to deal with a serious footballing problem, with the lack of action taking its toll on the football-hungry players, who were restricted to low-key friendly matches in preparation for the tough Champions League encounters. The Cairo giants, however, still appeared formidable, displaying their trademark intricate passing to brush aside their opponents and finish on top of their group with 11 points – thanks largely to the array of attacking talents at the disposal of coach Hossam El-Badry. The presence of Abou-Treika, El-Saied, Mohamed Barakat and Walid Soliman helped Ahly overcome the adverse effects of not having played much football in advance of the tournament. The possibility of Ahly's lifting a seventh, record-extending Champions League trophy was thrown into doubt after Esperance held the Cairo giants to a 1-1 draw in Alexandria in the final first-leg. In Tunis, however, Ahly roared back to win 2-1 in style, capping their efforts and significantly offsetting some of the psychological anguish they had endured over the past year. "I thank my players for their efforts in recent months, despite the suspension of the Egyptian Premier League," said El-Badry. "This title is dedicated to the martyrs." (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO Sportsand on Facebook atAhramOnlineSports) http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/58531.aspx
