Ahmed Hassan, distraught following Egypt's failure to qualify for the World Cup, put in a superb display to help league leaders Ahli move six points clear at the top with a 1-0 victory over Petrojet. The veteran midfielder hoped to captain Egypt at next year's South Africa finals in what would have probably been his last tournament with the national team but his dream was shattered by Algeria. Algeria defeated Egypt 1-0 in a controversial World Cup playoff in Sudan last week to prevent the Pharaohs from making their first appearance in the football's most prestigious event since 1990. Hassan, along with his Egypt teammates, had to return to league action few days later despite their agony. He kept annoying the opposing defense with some neat passes and crosses until scoring a stoppage-time goal with a low shot from inside the area to help Ahli end the resistance of second-placed Petrojet. In his goal celebration, Hassan put his hands on his head as if he was bemoaning his inability to fire a similar shot against Algeria. "We did our best to help the players overcome the World Cup disappointment," Ahli football director Hadi Khashaba said after the game. "They were very dejected and that even resulted in fitness problems. You could see that several international players sustained injuries against Petrojet." Ahli ensured they are firm favorites to win the title for the sixth successive season by extending their lead at the top to six points.
Narrow win for Ismaili Last season's runners-up Ismaili, blighted by continuous injury problems, moved third with a hard-fought 2-1 win over a brave Military Production side. Skipper Mohamed Hommos, also one of Egypt's players who are unlikely to remain available until the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, played a key role in the Dervishes' win, scoring the opener and making a pivotal contribution to the winner. Ismaili, who are now seven points behind fierce rivals Ahli, secured their first win in three games without the presence of injury victims Abdullah Saied and Omar Gamal. The absence of the influential attacking midfielders dearly affected Ismaili's start to their new campaign. "Our display is naturally affected by the injury of some key players, but thanks God we managed to get all three points," coach Emad Soliman commented. Pressure Mounted Ailing giants Zamalek once again failed to grab a second consecutive win, losing 1-0 at home to lowly Ghazl Mahalla to mount further pressure on beleaguered coach Henri Michel. The Cairo club, who defeated Production 3-2 in their previous game, were not able to convert several goalscoring opportunities, with strike duo Mido and Amr Zaki out due to disciplinary problem and injury respectively. Sherif Ashraf, who scored three goals so far this season, partnered Ahmed Gaafar upfront but neither managed to impress as Mahalla won with a 14th-minute controversial penalty from Mohamed Al-Etrawi.
Henri Michel: under fire Zamalek winger Shikabala was involved in a heated exchange with his own fans for the second time this season and will likely be punished. "I thought that I've added something to the team, but it seems that we need a lot of work," French boss Michel told the post-match press conference. "We played with a different formation today, yet we lost once again, so the problem is not in the playing strategy." Zamalek suffered three defeats in six games under Michel, who replaced Swiss coach Michel Decastel in August. Second-bottom Ittihad continued their recent revival, beating Police Union 1-0 to register their second win this season, thanks a 62nd-minute goal from Mohamed Nagi. ENPPI and Harras Hodoud are still looking for consistency after exiting the African Confederations Cup. Hodoud, who remained sixth in the table, slumped to a 2-0 defeat to Arab Contractors while ENPPI extended their winless streak to four games after a 1-1 draw with Masri. Promoted Mansoura caused an upset by crushing Asyut Petroleum 4-0 while fourth-placed Gaish settled for a 1-1 draw with Gouna.
