Mohamed Abou-Treika's 92nd minute strike in the African Champions League final against CS Sfaxien of Tunisia was by no means a regular goal that earned Ahli the continental title; it was a strike that opened the way for several records to be broken. Abou-Treika's amazing volley showered Ahli with new numbers, the most important being the number of African Champions League titles that the ‘Red Devils' have to their name. The victory in Tunisia took Ahli's tally to a record-equaling five Champions League titles and put them at level with Cairo rivals Zamalek, who have long bragged about their supremacy on the continental level. RECORDS DO NOT LIE But African club of the century, Ahli, demonstrated their prominence by registering their 11th continental title (4 African Cup Winners Cups, 2 African Super Cups, in addition to the 5 Champions League titles). This horde of titles cemented Ahli's status as Africa's best, as they lead the continent's clubs with 64 points, 14 ahead of their closest and most bitter contenders, Zamalek. The Cairo giants will have a chance to extend their points and achievements if they register wins in the 2006 FIFA Club World Cup in Japan and when they play another African Super Cup early in 2007. On the local level, Ahli have always been the top-dog, bagging 31 local league titles, 34 Egyptian Cup trophies and 3 Egyptian Super Cups. Ahli also have an Afro-Asian Cup and four Arab titles, taking their tally to 84 official titles on the local, continental, regional and international levels. Abou-Treika's goal also opened the door for Ahli to enter the record books in terms of ‘successive' numbers. The Egyptian giants became only the third team in Africa (after Englebert of Congo and Nigerian side Enyimba) to win back-to-back Champions League titles since the competition was inaugurated 42 years ago. Ahli's African victory also made them the first club to qualify for the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan for two successive times, an honor that no club worldwide achieved before.
African Champions Ahli Even Ahli's Portuguese coach, Manuel Jose, was blessed. He became the first coach to win the African Champions League title 3 times in the 21st century (2001, 2005 and 2006), making him one of the continent's most successful tacticians in history. CHA-CHING If we move on, we will find that Abou-Treika's goal also resulted in monetary figures flowing into Ahli's bank account. In addition to the $950,000 prize money for winning the African title, Ahli secured another $1 million for advancing to the Club World Cup in Japan in December 2006. The revenue from Ahli's first-leg final at the Cairo International Stadium, which ended in a 1-1 draw, brought in $150,000 for Egypt's sweethearts, the highest since Ahli's exhibition game against Real Madrid in August 2001. BEHIND THE NUMBERS Abou-Treika's goal was his eighth of the competition, making him the joint top-scorer with ASEC Mimosas midfielder Didier Ya Konan. Abou-Treika was born on November 7th, 1978 and the African final took place at the November 7th Stadium in Rades, Tunisia. The date of the African final was 11/11/2006. If you add 11 and 11 you will get Abou-Treika's shirt number, 22. These may have been omens, or may not, but at the end of the day, Ahli won and won big and Mohamed Abou-Treika was the man who delivered Ahli's fortunes.
