ISMAILIYA: Mohamed Barakat s second-half strike earned Ahly a 1-0 away victory over Ismaili in an ill-tempered Egyptian Premier League clash on Saturday. The mercurial midfielder scored the winner five minutes past the hour mark to dent Ismaili s hopes of competing for the league title. Ahly players rushed into the tunnel right following the final whistle to avoid being hit by a barrage of seats thrown from Ismaili fans. It was the Red Devils first league win over Ismaili since May 2006. Ahly moved into third place in the league table with 26 points, three behind second-placed Ismaili, who played three extra games. The Cairo giants, who want to win a fifth consecutive league title, will leapfrog Ismaili and leaders Petrojet, who have 30 points, if they win their three rescheduled matches. The match s rhythm was disrupted by continuous crowd troubles during the first half. Dozens of fireworks and seats were thrown onto the pitch as fans from both sides tried to unsettle the players. Ismaili supporters lifted a banner that read "Abou-Trika's mask dropped down, referring to the star playmaker s recent statements in which he indirectly branded them as "dogs. Mohamed Abou-Trika, who is renowned for his politeness, was infuriated by Ismaili fans support of Mexican side Pachuca, who defeated Ahly 4-2 in the FIFA Club World Cup. The fans actions heavily affected the players displays as Ahly and Ismaili created few opportunities before the break. Ismaili had the upper hand in the early stages of the game. They had a couple of decent efforts from left-back Ahmed Samir Farag and defender Moatassem Salem but good interceptions by Ahly s backline and keeper Amir Abdel-Hamid thwarted their attempts. Ismaili suffered a major blow when right-back Abdullah Shahat limped off the pitch after 29 minutes due to injury. The hosts coach Ricardo Ferreira introduced playmaker Mohab Saied instead of the 23-year-old. Ahly tried to capitalize on Shahat s absence by relying on Sayed Moawad s raids down the left flank. Ahly adopted an offensive approach in the second half and exposed Ismaili s backline more than once. Four minutes past the hour mark, Abou-Trika ghosted behind Ismaili s back three and controlled a deft pass inside the area but his weak shot did not trouble Sobhi. Barakat made amends just one minute later after taking advantage of a Samuel Johnson blunder. A poor tackle by Johnson let Flavio s long pass evade him to find Barakat, who slotted home past Sobhi. Substitute Mohamed Fadl was introduced in a bid to support lone striker Mostafa Karim but he failed to make a notable impact. Ismaili s only chance to level the score fell to Karim, whose shot from inside the area flew high over after a fine cross from Omar Gamal.
