Although they are out of contention for the Egyptian Premier League title, Zamalek will be looking forward to upsetting their arch-rivals Ahli in the Cairo derby on Thursday. The White Knights have lost hope of claiming a domestic triumph after suffering a series of losses this term due to a severe dip in form. But now they are kept on an even keel, following the promotion of several influential youths to the senior team, including Hazem Emam, Ahmed Al-Merghani and Sabri Rahil. "I can't see why we can't defeat Ahli. I believe our chances of winning the game are equal to those of our opponents," said Zamalek assistant coach Sami Al-Sheshini. "We fully trust our young players and they are determined to beat Ahli and maintain their fine run of results." Zamalek defeated the Red Devils only once in their last nine meetings, when Ahli fielded a second-string line-up in 2007. The Ahli-favoring head-to-head record could be a strong motive for the recently-promoted youths, who might seal a precious win that a previous squad of veterans failed to register in the past few years. Defeating Ahli in the upcoming match would also jeopardize the defending champions' title chances, which could act as catalyst to put an end to their local supremacy over the past four years. Ahli are in second place in the table with 52 points, with five matches remaining including their clash with six-placed Zamalek. Ismaili are two points clear on top, but they played two games more than Ahli. Crucial Ahli assistant coach Hossam Al-Badri conceded the forthcoming derby will be of the utmost importance. "This derby will be different from any other derby during the last five years because the result will be crucial for us," Al-Badri told Ahli's official site. "In recent years, I think matches against Zamalek were not that significant to our league position. "I believe if we won maximum points from our next two games, we will be so close to being champions."
On the other hand, Manuel Jose's assistant believes that Zamalek are not under such a pressure, given that they are not targeting the silverware. "Zamalek are buoyant by their recent win over Petrojet; also they are under no pressure because they're out of the title race, so they should play with no nerves," he added. Zamalek boss Michel Decastel proved Al-Badri right. FilGoal.com learnt that the Swiss coach told his players the Cairo Derby is just like any other league fixtures, stressing that his objective is to build a combative squad for the next season. He also assured that the result won't really matter for him. On the Sidelines Ahli midfielder Mohamed Barakat and defender Shadi Mohamed have been both ruled out of anticipated encounter with injuries. Mercurial Barakat has been suffering from a hamstring problem that kept him out of Ahli's games against Ghazl Mahalla and Kano Pillars. Skipper Mohamed won't feature against Zamalek due to a muscle injury that also forced him to sit out the Pillars game. Zamalek, on the other hand, should have regular keeper Abdul-Wahed Al-Sayed available after he recovered from an ankle injury. Read also: Zamalek banking on youth vitality in Cairo derby Barakat, Shadi out of Cairo derby Zamalek focus on mental factor Belgian De Bleeckere to referee Cairo derby
