Ahli assistant coach Hossam Al-Badri said that his side's tactical qualities were the reason behind upsetting Sfaxien in Tunis and defending the Champions League title. A piece of magic from Egypt playmaker Mohamed Abou-Treika gave the defending champions a stoppage time 1-0 victory over Sfaxien and silenced some 50,000 supporters who were celebrating a two-minute far African glory. "I am delighted with the accomplishment if this generation of Ahli players as I was confident we can win away and win the title," Al-Badri told a press conference after Saturday's thriller. "We were ready for different scenarios but the game went just as we expected. All the team played their roles as designed and were in excellent form." Despite needing a victory after a 1-1 draw in Cairo a fortnight ago in the first leg, Ahli started the game defensively as they deployed three holding midfielders and one striker upfront. But manager Manuel Jose, known of his bold formations and substitutions, started turning things around since the 42nd minute when he fielded forward Emad Meteb for defensive midfielder Akwetey Mensah. Islam Al-Shater then played for Mohamed Abdullah and, with the match closing on the finish line; playmaker Wale Riyadh replaced center-back Mohamed Sedik. "Jose ran the show brilliantly and his substitutions improved the team and made it able to threaten Sfaxien's net," Al-Badri said. Ahli tied Zamalek's record of winning five African Champions League titles and will represent Africa in the World Club Championship in Japan in December. They will play New Zealand champions Auckland City on December 10th. "We will start our preparations for the World event as soon as possible to erase the bad image we left from our participation last season," he said. Ahli lost twice in the World Club Championship 2005 and were left in the basement of the six-club table.
