Record eight-time champions Ahly of Egypt reached the final of the African Champions League after beating Algeria's Entente Setif 4-3 on aggregate while Esperance of Tunisia overcame Primeiro Agosta of Angola 4-2 to meet the Red Devils in a repeat of 2012 in which Ahly came out on top. But on Friday 2 November in the first leg in Cairo, it will be different as Ahly will have to score as many goals as possible to serve as a cushion for their second leg match in Tunisia on 9 November. In an official warm-up, Ahly played Al-Wasl of the UAE in the Zayed Champions Cup round of 16 on Sunday at Borg Al-Arab Stadium in Alexandria. The game ended 2-2. Ahly took a first half lead through Ahmed Fathi but were slammed with two late goals from Al-Wasl's Brazilian duo Caio and Fabio Lima. However, Ahly's Mohsen scored on the turn just before the final whistle to keep his team's hopes alive of advancing to the quarter-final when they face Al-Wasl in the Emirates in their second leg match on 22 November. Ahly Head Coach Frenchman Patrice Carteron had to play with only half of the team's starters, sparing them for the Esperance contender, including Moroccan Walid Azaro and winger Walid Suleiman. Ahly officials are ready to welcome Esperance, African champions twice. Mohamed Morgan, Ahly's manager, made a number of calls to Esperance officials concerning accommodation. “I have direct instructions from Ahly's President Mahmoud Al-Khatib that we pave the way for all of Esperance's needs as the Tunisians have always been welcoming of all Egyptian teams in Tunisia,” Morgan said, highlighting the fact that the two countries have enjoyed strong relations for years. Egyptian security forces will allow 50,000 fans to attend the match. Ahly officials received a number of phone calls from Egyptian Ambassador to Tunisia Nabil Habashi who assured Ahly that all preparations for the second leg match are going well. Mohamed Youssef, Ahly's assistant coach, has banned the players from holding any interviews with the press. “We are in a very crucial time. I need the players to concentrate and we are suffering from a very tight schedule so I don't want to distract the players. We all must put our hands together and put all problems aside to advance safely to the title which is our goal.” Zamalek and Ittihad Ahly have announced that the team's first choice goalkeeper will be Mohamed Al-Shennawi who sustained a minor knock in his thigh against Al-Wasl. In that game, he was replaced by Sherif Ekrami. “The Ahly coach decided to rest Al-Shennawi after sustaining the injury to prepare him for the CAF Champions League final,” Ahly's doctor Khaled Mahmoud was quoted on the club's official Website as saying. Ahly also announced that winger Eslam Mohareb is fit for the final against Esperance, while Nigerian forward Junior Ajayi will return to action after three weeks. Ajayi suffered a cruciate ligament injury in July. “Ahly's technical staff decided to rest Mohareb against Al-Wasl after he suffered from fatigue, to make sure he is fit against Esperance,” Mahmoud said. This is the second year in a row Ahly have reached the African final. Last year they lost to Wydad of Morocco. Meanwhile, a goal from Kabongo Kasongo gave Zamalek a 1-0 away victory over fellow Egyptian team Ittihad of Alexandria in the first leg of the Zayed Champions Cup round of 16, raising hopes high of reaching the quarter-final. Ittihad will be facing the wind in the second leg on 30 November in Cairo as they aim for a place in the top eight. It was Zamalek's fourth successive win in all competitions.
