 |
Al-Ahram Weekly 9 - 15 September 1999 Issue No. 446 
|
||
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
| ||
|
Al-Ahram Weekly 9 - 15 September 1999 Issue No. 446
|
||
| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
| ||
Three strikes
By Abeer Anwar
Ahli's Ali Maher trying to penetrate Morocco's Al-Ragaa defence
photo: Amr Gamal
Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Focus Culture Features Books Special Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Home advantage was not enough for Ahli who crashed to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Morocco's Al-Ragaa in the African Champions League. Zamalek also bit the dust after going down to Nigeria's Kwara United 2-1 in an African Federation Cup quarter-final encounter in Nigeria. The treble was completed when Misri caught the losing bug 1-0 away to Congo's Dragons in the quarter-finals of the African Cup Winners' Cup, reports Abeer Anwar.
Ahli's defeat was by far the most serious since it leaves it with three points from two matches while Al-Ragaa heads the group with a perfect record after two games. The Moroccan club left Cairo with a valuable three points after scoring late in the game. The 87th minute goal came from a header at close range which goalkeeper Essam El-Hadari mistimed.
The scoreline reflected the defensive style of the game. Ahli rarely threatened Al-Ragaa's goal and it is still struggling with the off-season losses of key players to Europe. This was illustrated all too well in last week's opening league match with Dina. Replacement players still need to gel with the veterans. Ahli's German coach Reiner Tsobel, said as much following the match. "The team has a number of young players whose experience is very little."
Adding to the misery of the night was the sending off of Hesham Hanafi seven minutes from time for kicking an opponent off the ball.
Zamalek's loss to Kwara away was a disappointment when the more experienced club might have expected a draw. The Egyptian club is a newcomer to this championship, but has several other African titles under its belt. Kwara opened the scoring in the 28th minute. Ahmed Abdallah brought Zamalek level in the 44th minute. Zamalek appeared satisfied with a draw and spent the second half massed in front of their goalmouth. Kwara broke through in the 75th minute. Zamalek manager Mahmoud Abu Regela was optimistic about the second-leg, saying the club had a decent chance of reaching the semi-finals. However, he had strong words for Amr Fahim, Ahmed Abdallah and Abdel-Halim Ali, whom he described as being out of shape.
Misri's fate in the Congo was sealed by a penalty kick in the 50th minute. Several goal opportunities for the Port Said club went begging. Still, Misri manager Mohsen Saleh was pleased. "The performance of the team was excellent but the number of injured players hurt our chances of winning," he said. He was however confident of victory in the return leg on 17 September.
