Crowning glory

Thrashing Zamalek, Ahli put the icing on the cake, writes Mohamed El-Sayed

---

Click to view caption

In front of Ahli's faithful Abu Treika rejoices and Zamalek's Medhat Abdel-Hadi takes a breather

As the sun emerged from behind the cloudy skies of Cairo, swarms of football fans began to flock to the 30,000-seat Military Academy Stadium. Though it was early, 8am, and 11 hours were left before game time, and the stadium is far from downtown, the famed Ahli-Zamalek derby could not be missed.

The red flags -- though as expensive as LE5 -- have been an excellent sell, while trading in Zamalek's white found a sluggish market. The gate leading to the stands devoted to Ahli fans saw a lengthy queue, the other not half as long.

That best reflected the prospects of the 95th derby between the country's two powerhouses. Having clinched the national league title seven weeks before its end, the red fans wanted to cap it all off with a win against Zamalek. In the first encounter of the season, Ahli won 4-2. Their supporters wanted them to do it again.

On the other side, having produced one of their worst seasons ever, Zamalek's supporters harboured hopes of a derby win to compensate.

Before the game, Zamalek's Brazilian head coach Carlos Capral visited the Ahli locker room and congratulated the players and their Portuguese coach Manuel Jose on winning the trophy. The move was warmly received by Ahli fans.

At 7pm, the temperature dropped to as low as eight degrees. Despite the rain that preceded the game, the reds faithful stayed in their seats. The first half showed that both teams were tentative. However, Zamalek dared to launch attacks from time to time. Their energetic striker Abdel-Halim Ali could have spoilt the red celebrations had his ball not rebounded from the post of an empty goal.

The Devils' ever energetic midfielder Mohamed Barakat was quick to reply a few minutes later via a tantalising header that sailed inches wide.

In the second half the Devils turned the tables and Zamalek were victim to the vagaries of football. Sloppy, sluggish and disorganised, the white team were hounded and humbled. After 60 minutes of goalless football, Ahli's rising star and the league's top goal scorer with 11 goals Emad Miteb sent a delicious left-foot volley to fire his team ahead. Zamalek's goalkeeper Abdel-Wahed El-Sayed, a mountain of a man, could not but watch the ball make its way into the upper corner of his net.

It was a mere prelude to a night of embarrassment for the White House as a rampant Ahli cut through them at will with swift, slick passing out of defence. The thrashing continued when Barakat released Mohamed Abu Treika with a cross in the 68th minute, and there never was any doubt about the end product. It was a trademark Ahli goal on the counter-attack but you were left to wonder how Zamalek defenders had failed to prepare for it.

After scoring, Abu Treika hurried to the sidelines to embrace Thabet El-Batal, Ahli's director of football operations who attended the match despite suffering severe illness. His eyes filled with tears as his team displayed one of their best performances. (Twenty-four hours later El-Batal passed away).

It did not take long for matters to worsen for the White House as their mercurial midfielder Ibrahim Said was sent off for an early shower after having recklessly challenged Ahli's defender Shadi Mohamed.

In the 72nd minute, Abu Treika again received a cross from Miteb; the unmarked striker had the simple task of steering home from six yards. Scoring the fifth goal in the white net since his move to the red castle last year, Abu Treika tormented Zamalek with his pace and timing of runs. He sealed every pass with the stamp of quality.

Within 12 minutes the white team was in a losing cause. And after the third goal the few white faithful were on their way home.

The devils looked likely to score every time they went forward. They may be the model of a modern attacking top team, all pace, movement and incisiveness. They remain a joy to behold when in this mood. On the other side, it was like watching blood drain from a corpse to witness the anemia, the hopelessness, the absence of skill and spirit in the white team.

"[Winning the derby was] the best way to celebrate the winning of the national league title," Jose told the press. "I am happy not because we sealed the title, but because we won this special championship, 7-2 on aggregate."

For Zamalek the abysmal defeat marked the end of a season which left them in the depths of despair.

With this sweeping victory Ahli crowned one of their most successful seasons ever. The Devils set a world record by winning 17 consecutive league matches before being halted by Misri of Port Said. Having signed a plethora of the country's best talents, Ahli produced first-class performances this season. This ushered in a new era in which Ahli are reigning supreme. A banner held by a red fan summed it up: "Sorry, this is the era of Ahli."