A last-gasp goal from Mohamed Abu Treika gave Ahli the lead of Group A and earned the second spot for arch-rivals Zamalek, Ahmed Morsy reports Five-times Africa champions, Ahli scored a dramatic 2-1 home victory over Dynamos Harare in the group phase of CAF Champions League on Sunday. Ahli managed to grab the lead five minutes in, when Egypt skipper Ahmed Hassan released Mohamed Barakat on the right flank before the mercurial midfielder sent a low cross which Thomas Sweswe converted into his own net to hand Ahli the initiative. Ahli's shaky defense almost cost them in the 15th minute when Dynamos forward robbed Shadi Mohamed and went clear on goal. He easily rounded goalkeeper Amir Abdul- Hamid, who hastily rushed out of his goal, before squaring to the unmarked Edward Sadomba. But Wael Gomaa's last- minute interception cleared the danger. Ahli had a chance to double their lead in the 19th minute when Flavio Amado received Emad Meteb's flick with a powerful volley but his effort was blocked by Dynamos keeper. Zimbabwean side kept pushing forward in a bid to level the score. They took advantage of some gaps in Ahli's defence to launch several raids on Abdul-Hamid but in vain. In the second half, Ahli were almost too sluggish. Although they had the better of possession, they rarely threatened the visitors. As a result, the onrushing midfielder Lazarus Muhoni capitalised on a dreadful marking to connect with a cross at the far post and head home to equalise the score and stun the home crowd. However, star playmaker Mohamed Abu Treika, who was introduced in the second half to replace an ineffective Meteb, came to Ahli's rescue four minutes into stoppage time when he converted a Flavio pass from close range despite being under pressure. Ahli coach Manuel Jose said that the win was necessary to boost the players' morale following the Egyptian League defeat to Misri. As Ahli slumped to a surprising 2-0 defeat to Port Said-based club Misri a week a go in the domestic league after failing to put on a convincing display. Although Ahli failed to impress against the Zimbabweans, coach Jose was still happy to claim all three points that helped the team extend their lead on top of Group A. "My players were nervous after returning from Port Said," he was quoted as saying by Ahli's official website. "They had to regain their confidence to forget the Misri defeat and look forward to Ahli's upcoming matches, especially that all of us target the African title. The win has also moved us closer to securing a place in the semi-finals." In the other Group A game, below-par Zamalek were held to a goalless draw by 10-man ASEC Mimosas at Military Academy in the group phase of CAF Champions League on Saturday. The Cairo giants were hoping to claim all three points to boost their chances of securing a last-four berth before facing ASEC and Dynamos away from home. But they failed to do so after a lackluster display which saw them rarely threaten ASEC, who played with ten men for the majority of the game due to the dismissal of Yao Kouassi in the 18th minute. Zamalek laid siege to ASEC's area in the second period, but failed to break through the Ivorians' tight defence. The hosts tried useless long balls, which was easily dealt with by ASEC defenders. Mahmoud Fathallah should have broken the deadlock when he received Ahmed Magdi's cut- back pass but despite being under no pressure, he shot horribly wide. Consequently, Zamalek coach Reiner Hollman urged Zamalek fans to give him more time in order to help the team regain 'best shape'. Hollman defended his side as he still sees hope in reaching the semis. "Supporters should be more patient so that we can help the team find its best shape. I have been here since two months only," said the German after the game. "I don't think we should blame players because I believe they have done their best in the game. ASEC made it difficult for us after the red card. They defended extensively. We should never give up on reaching the semi-finals. We know our remaining games are not easy, but we can still go through." In addition to a crunch derby with arch rivals Ahli, Zamalek still have to visit ASEC and Dynamos Harare en route to the next round. The results of Group A put Ahli in charge of Group A with seven points, three ahead of arch-rivals Zamalek. Zimbabwean side Dynamos lie third on three points, one ahead of Ivory Coast's ASEC Mimosas. Zimbabwean side Dynamos could have overtaken the White Knights if they had beaten Ahli in Cairo on Sunday. Zamalek have set 14 September as a date for their CAF Champions League encounter against arch-rivals Ahli. The match will be played at a relatively late time -- 10pm as it will coincide with Muslim's holy month of Ramadan. On the other hand, in Group B, former champions Enyimba of Nigeria moved to the top of Group B of the Champions League after defeating DR Congo side TP Mazembe 2-0 on Sunday. Two second-half goals secured victory for the home side in Aba, helping them to go the summit with six points. Enyimba's win means Sudanese side Al Hilal drop to second in the group as they could only draw 1-1 with Coton Sport of Cameroon in Omdurman on Friday. Regarding the CAF Confederation Cup, Harras Al-Hedoud came back from behind to beat Tunisian Champions Club Africain 2-1 to register a successful start of their group stage campaign in Group A. The visitors made a shocking start by scoring an early goal from Zoheir Zouadi after only six minutes. The Egyptians had to wait until the 67th minute to respond when Mohamed Fawzi scored the equalizer. Thirteen minutes later Ahmed Abdul-Ghani struck the decider to clinch the full points of the game. Harras Al-Hedoud are second of the group with three points just behind Tunisian side Sfaxien who beat Inter Clube de Luanda 4-1. Meanwhile in Group B, Etoile du Sahel had a 2-0 win over Asante Kotoko of Ghana on Sunday to get the second spot of the group after Al-Merreikh of Sudan who outplayed JS Kabylie of Algeria 3-1 in Omdurman on Saturday in the other Group B encounter.
