Though Zamalek have little hope of winning the domestic football league this season, tomorrow's derby with Ahli will still draw the crowds, Ahmed Morsy reports The biggest football rivalry in Africa and the Middle East, between Egyptian giants Ahli and Zamalek, will be the focus of the country tomorrow. It will be meeting No 101 between the two arch rivals in the national league. Ahli have won 35 times, 10 more than Zamalek, and 40 encounters have been draws. In the season's first leg Ahli won 1-0. For Ahli, a win will further smooth their path towards a fourth national league trophy in a row and increase to 33 a record number of league title. Ahli were given a boost when club doctor Ehab Ali said on Sunday that playmaker Mohamed Abu Treika might recover in time for the game. Abu Treika sustained a knee injury in Ahli's 1-0 victory over Spinning Mehalla in the league earlier last month. "Abu Treika underwent successful surgery in Germany. He has a chance of featuring against Zamalek," Ali said. In addition, Emad Meteb returned to Ahli after taking a medical check-up for Russia's FC Saturn, and could also take part in the derby. Ahli's official site stated that the 25-year-old striker trained with the team on Saturday after returning from Turkey, where Saturn are camping. "Meteb is available against Zamalek unless Saturn officially want him during the next few days," Ahli assistant coach Hossam Al-Badri said. Saturn, which finished fifth in the Russian league last season, will kick off their 2008 campaign against Spartak Nalchik on Saturday. Although Ahli are on top of the table with 58 points, a massive 17 clear points of fifth-place Zamalek, the Cairo derby has always been a special occasion. Zamalek in particular need a morale-boosting win to regain their confidence and get back to winning ways. That's why Zamalek have insisted on a foreign referee for the Cairo derby which is traditionally assigned to foreign referees anyway so as to avoid accusations of officials' bias Zamalek are keeping another eye on the Egyptian cup as it is their only hope of claiming any title since the league crown in the 2003/2004 season. In the cup quarter-final, 10-man Zamalek bounced back from a goal down to claim an emphatic win over the in-form Cement Suez 4-1. The Cairo club risked losing their only realistic target this season after falling behind to an early strike by Cement's Mohamed El-Fayoumi. Matters went from bad to worse early in the second half when substitute Gamal Hamza was sent off for picking up two bookings. However, Zamalek managed to storm back to score four goals and book their place in the semi-final. "I'm eager to help my teammates lift the Egyptian Cup to dedicate it to our fans," Zamalek goalkeeper Mohamed Abdel-Monsef said. "The fans have been waiting a very long time to have something to cheer about." Zamalek clash against Haras Al-Hedoud in the semi-final of the cup in the Military Stadium next Tuesday. The Arab Contractors host Enppi on Wednesday in the other semi-final.
