Getting to the point

With only six matches left, the battle for points is bitter. Alaa Shahine reports on the struggle at the top and bottom of the football table
Ismaili look to protect their lead in the Egyptian football league when they take on Ghazl El-Suez in a tough road task on Saturday. Cairo powerhouses Ahli and Zamalek, trailing by five and six points respectively, face Goldi and Ittihad in the tournament's 21st round.
Ismaili are atop the standings with 52 points, five ahead of Ahli, while defending champions Zamalek have 46 points. Only six matches remain, leaving Ismaili sitting pretty.
But their coach would have none of that. Speaking to reporters before the match, Mohsen Saleh, widely tipped to become the new man at the helm of the national team, stressed the necessity of winning in Suez. "We have to keep winning if we are serious about winning the championship," he said. "We are facing tough competition from Ahli and Zamalek and we have to continue winning to stay on track."
Arab Contractors host Ghazl El- Mehalla, while bottom of the table Sohag take on relegation-threatened Mansoura. Other matches feature Qanah and Tersana and Baladia and Misri.
Ismaili remained leader of the pack following a hard-fought home victory over Arab Contractors, while Ahli and Zamalek also emerged victorious in the 20th round of the championship that ended on Saturday.
Ahli thrashed Tersana 5-0 as they remained hot on Ismaili's heels. Defending champions Zamalek beat Ghazl El-Suez 2-0 in Cairo Stadium to stay third on 46 points with only six matches remaining.
Goldi continued their recovery, beating Ittihad 1-0 at home thanks to a lone strike by former international Tareq Mustafa to lift the club, owned by business tycoon Ahmed Bahgat, to seventh place on 24 points.
Misri continued their successful run under new coach Anwar Salama, getting by relegation- threatened Qanah 2-1. Mansoura trounced Baladia 4-0 and Ghazl El- Mehalla struggled past Sohag 1-0.
Ismaili's 1-0 victory over the Contractors came courtesy of an Abdel-Hamid Bassiouni follow-up after sloppy marking by the visitors. Islam El-Shatir curved a corner to Mohamed Abu Greisha whose header found Bassiouni who stretched to tip the ball in past Tareq Suleiman.
Bassiouni could have made it 2-0 one minute from time when the hosts were awarded a penalty kick, but Suleiman placed himself firmly behind the shot.
Ismaili, two-time league champions, last won the title in 1990 after a 2-0 victory over Ahli in a decisive play-off.
On Friday, Ahli registered their biggest victory of the season. Hossam Ghali launched the start of the big night for the Red Devils 15 minutes into the kick-off. The 21- year-old midfielder rose to meet a corner by Angolan import Gilberto and fired a header with little trouble from the defence.
It was 2-0 two minutes before the break when Reda Shehata netted his first goal with Ahli since joining the fabled side from Mansoura this year. Shehata made a darting run on the right and unleashed a shot that Tersana's Islam Youssef could have saved had he stood his ground in the centre of the goalmouth.
The floodgates opened wide in the second half. Ahmed Belal continued his goal-scoring ways since coming off the bench last month. In the 51st minute he was at the end of an Ibrahim Said cross to head home. Soon, Belal found himself alone again and fired home, making it 4-0.
Khaled Bibo completed the rout three minutes from time. Substitute Walid Salaheddin received the ball outside the box and set Bibo clear with one of his trademark passes as the forward slotted home with ease.
Speaking to reporters after the match, Ahli's Portuguese boss Manuel Jose hailed his men. "It was our best game this season and was much needed after our unexpected defeat against Marrikh in the African Champions League," he said.
Ahli lost 3-1 to the Sudanese side in the second leg of the championship's second round but advanced to the last eight phase on the away goals rule after winning the first leg 2-0 in Cairo. "We still have seven matches and we have to win them all to clinch the title," Jose added.
A day later, Zamalek fought off a lacklustre first half against Ghazl El-Suez in Cairo to secure three valuable points in a business-like approach. The defending champions went straight on the offensive, with Hazim Imam and Tareq El-Said hitting the woodwork in the first five minutes, but the defensive-minded visitors refused to buckle.
Substitute Ghanaian striker Ahmed Felix got Zamalek's badly needed goal in the 67th minute with a looping header over keeper Wael Khalifa, while top marksman Hossam Hassan doubled the lead in the 87th minute. The veteran striker appeared to take a dive in the area but referee Hassan Ali believed it to be the real thing. Hassan took the set piece which banged off the left post before going in to score his league- leading 15th goal.
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