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It starts with China
Ahmed Hamdi Published in Al-Ahram Weekly on 10 - 12 - 2013

While fans around Egypt await a possible match-up between Ahli and European champions Bayern Munich in the FIFA Club World Cup semi-finals, Ahli's coach Mohamed Youssef believes the opening match against Guangzhou, the Asian champions from China, is much more important. “Anyone who understands football well must know that the most important game is the opening one against (Guangzhou) Evergrande,” Youssef told FIFA's official website.
Still, Youssef has made it clear that Ahli has no fear going into that opening match on Saturday against the Chinese team. “We have watched the Asian champions and it's a special team which plays a modern fast style of football,” Youssef told the press after Ahli's last friendly game before the international tournament. “But we have special players as well with much speed and a strong defence and we're not afraid to face any team,” he added.
Heading into his fifth FIFA Club World Cup with Ahli, the team captain and solid rock defender Wa'el Gomaa believes Ahli is superior to Guangzhou because of the experience. “We've participated in this tournament many times and for that we are much more experienced than Guangzhou,” Gomaa told the press. “This is on our side.”
Guangzhou's captain Dario Conca spoke about his team's dreams going into their first Club World Cup. “No one likes losing games. Neither do I,” Conca said in an interview with FIFA's official website. “The Club World Cup will be a hard test for us. We will meet the African champions and if we make it through, awaiting us are the likes of Bayern Munich and Atletico Mineiro,” he added.
The Argentine player went high with his dreams. “We are looking to become the world champions and we have the confidence needed to win it heading into the competition.” The captain, who is set to leave the Chinese team after the tournament going back to his old team Fluminense, believes that giving more energy and passion will be the key to success.
Guangzhou's Brazilian striker Muriqui has expressed his thoughts too heading into his first match in the Mundial. “The first game (against Ahli) will be a hard test and we should strive to win. We represent China and Asia, so we will spare nothing to get a good result,” the 27-year-old told FIFA.com. “These are world class teams but we will take our game to them. We are strong as a group and are campaign-hardened. The Club World Cup is a new challenge for us but we are looking forward to it,” he added.
The Chinese side is managed by the Italian coach Marcello Lippi who knows exactly what a World Cup means having led his country's national team to World Cup glory in 2006.
Lippi holds the honour of lifting both the FIFA World Cup and UEFA Champions League with Juventus in 1996 which are arguably the two biggest tournaments in football. He was named the world's best football manager by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) both in 1996 and 1998, and world's best national coach in 2006. The 65-year-old veteran coach will go head to head with Youssef who hasn't yet spent a year coaching. That is definitely an advantage for the Italian that could make the two teams equal considering Ahli's more experienced players.
But the rookie coach of Ahli believes that playing in Morocco is another advantage for his team against the Chinese. “Theoretically, playing in Morocco gives us an advantage. First, it's an Arab country, so the fans there will support us. The weather is also pretty much similar to Egypt's, so such factors could favour us.” Youssef told FIFA.com.
Ahli has tried to get into the Moroccan atmosphere ahead of the first game as the team beat Moroccan side Maghreb Athletique Sporting 2-1 in a warm up.
In two days, at 6pm CLT, Ahli and Guangzhou will clash in Agadir Stadium in a one-chance glory knockout match. “If we pass this test, then we will have a chance to compete for third place. If we don't, there simply won't be a third-place playoff,” Youssef told FIFA.com. “For us, this tournament simply means beating Guangzhou in the first game.”
In 2006, Ahli finished third in the tournament. They ended up fourth in 2012.

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