CAIRO - The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) announced Monday that the Military Academy Stadium will host the matches of Egyptian giants Al-Ahly and Zamalek in the second leg in the round of 16 in the African Champions League (ACL) on May 12 and 13, Egypt's official Middle East News Agency (MENA) quoted Azmi Megahed, the EFA spokesman, as saying. According to MENA, Ahly will face Stade Malien of Mali in the second leg at 6:30pm (Cairo Local Time [CLT]) on May 12, while Zamalek will play Moroccan side Moghreb Fez on May 13 at the same stadium. In their first-leg matches on Sunday, Ahly lost to a dramatic injury time goal against Stade Malien of Mali, while Zamalek defeated Moghreb Fez 2-0, thanks to goals from Ahmed Hassan and Ahmed Gaafar.
Al-Ahly: Bad luck defeated us
Mohamed Youssef, Al-Ahly assistant coach said that the players tried very hard against Stade Malien of Mali, although they lost because of a last-minute goal. "Most of the players did well, but it was bad luck that defeated us," he added after the game, stressing that the team played well against respectable opponents who also played well. The assistant coach explained that the stoppage of the Egyptian football and the cancellation of the Premier League have had a negative impact on the team. "The lads also suffered because of the humidity in Mali," Youssef pointed out, regretting that striker Mohamed Naggi 'Geddo' and Senegalese Dominique Da Silva didn't capitalise on the chances they had throughout the game. Youssef was critical of the referee, arguing that the referee's decisions also contributed to their loss, especially as the team clearly deserved a penalty, when striker Emad Meteab was fouled by a Stade Malien defender. Al-Ahly's goalkeepers' coach Ahmed Nagy, agreed that the Red Devils were out of luck in Mali, as he told Al-Ahly TV channel after the game. Nagy also blamed the high temperatures in Mali and the stoppage of sports activities in Egypt, emphasising that Ahly are capable of compensating for their first-leg loss in the second leg in Cairo later this month. On February 1, in the coastal city of Port Said, an Egyptian Premier League match between Al-Masry and Al-Ahly turned violent, claiming the lives of at least 74 Ahly fans and injuring around 1,000 more. Seconds after the final whistle, thousands of supporters of Port Said team Al-Masry invaded the pitch, hurling bottles and rocks at the fans of Cairo's Ahly. As a result, early in March, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) cancelled the Premier League 2011-12 season, deciding to replace it with a friendly tournament called the ‘Martyrs' Cup' and the Egypt Cup, played behind closed doors. But then, in mid-March, the EFA decided to cancel the Martyrs' Cup and Egypt Cup, after Al-Ahly Ultras groups threatened to cause trouble in the stadiums, if the tournament and the Egypt Cup went ahead before the perpetrators of the massacre in Port Said were punished. Last month, the EFA decided to freeze the first team of Al-Masry Club of Port Said for two years, coupled with a home-play ban lasting three years. Al-Masry's youth and junior teams are excluded from the EFA sanctions. Last week, the Grievances Committee at EFA increased the sanctions on Al-Masry Club, which will now be relegated to the Second Division after a one-year suspension from all football competitions, while the ban on their playing matches on home soil has been upped to four years from three years. Al-Ahly, the six-time ACL winners, entered the game in Mali without several key players, including Brazilian striker Fabio Junior, who was injured, and team captain Hossam Ghali, who'd fallen out with Portuguese technical coach Manuel José da Silve. The team was also hit early in the eighth minute of the first half, when defender Wael Gomaa was injured and had to be replaced by Sherif Abdel-Fadil. The Red Devils qualified for the round of 16 after defeating Ethiopian Coffee 3-0 in Cairo, thanks to a goal from striker Fabio Junior and a brace from playmaker Mohamed Abou Treika; in the first leg, the two teams had played out a goalless draw in Addis Ababa. The Stade Malien team are in second place in the Malian Premier League, nine points behind leaders Dijolbea. "Stade Malien are a strong team, especially in front of their fans. In any case, the second-leg game in Cairo will be very tough," Sayyed Abdel-Hafeez, the Ahly football director, explained, adding that the team will resume training on Thursday, after two days' rest.
Zamalek start training for ACL return match
Zamalek team, headed by Hassan Shehata, will Wednesday start their preparations for the ACL return match against Moroccan side Moghreb Fez on May 13, after two days' rest. Shehata, the technical coach of the White Knights, said he was delighted with his side's victory away from home against Moghreb Fez, although he warned that the second leg won't be easy. "The Zamalek win in Rabat doesn't mean that we're going to automatically qualify for the ACL group stage," he said. Zamalek need to win or draw the second leg in Cairo on May 13, or even lose by only one goal, in order to qualify directly for the ACL quarter-finals. "Moghreb Fez are a strong team who play well whether at home or away. They are technically and physically ready, because they play regularly in their Premier League. That made the first leg difficult," Shehata explained. Zamalek, the five-time African champions, qualified for round 16 of the ACL after defeating Africa Sports in the round of 32. The White Knights lost 2-1 to Africa Sports of Côte d'Ivoire in the second-leg game in Abidjan, but qualified on the away-goal rule. A late penalty goal by striker Amr Zaki saved the day for the White Knights. In the first leg of the round of 32, Zamalek had beaten Africa Sports 1-0 behind closed doors in the Military Stadium, thanks to a goal from the dangerous Benin striker Razak Omotoyossi. Zamalek will welcome back Hani Said and Ahmed Samir, who didn't play in the first leg, because of injury. The 62-year-old coach added that the stoppage of the Egyptian football and the cancellation of the Premier League have no doubt had a negative impact on the team.
The Enppi coaching staff have said that the team will travel to Mali on May 8. There, the petroleum team will face Cercle de Bamako of Mali in the second leg in the round of 16 of the African Confederation Cup on May 13. Enppi grabbed a 3-1 win over Cercle in the first leg in Cairo last Saturday, thanks to Ivorian striker Vincent Di Foneye, who grabbed a brace, while Amr el-Halawani scored once. Hossam el-Badri, the Enppi technical coach, said that the return game against Cercle de Bamako won't be as easy as some people apparently think. Hussein Amin, Enppi general coach, praised the players' performance and persistence, stressing that the return leg will be difficult, especially as it's going to be on the opponents' home soil. Amin revealed that the coaching staff did not use Mohamed Abul Ella and Adel Moustafa in the first leg, as their opponents have a lot of young, speedy players. He stressed that the coaching staff are confident that the lads will put on well in the return leg in Mali. "We're not going to play for a draw; that would be dangerous," he added.
