One left

Following exits by Zamalek and Mehalla, Ismaili are the only Egyptian squad remaining in the most prestigious Arab club football title, writes Mohamed El-Sayed

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Apparently they've learned their lesson from last year, determined to make up for the loss of the most prestigious Arab football club competition. There is no doubt the memory of their loss in the lucrative Arab Champions League to Sfax of Tunisia after a marathon that ended with a dramatic shoot-out is still fresh in the minds of the players of Egypt's coastal city team Ismaili.

This year Ismaili, aka the Dervishes, are smarter and probably better and are in the middle of an almost perfect record, winning seven out of the eight games they played in the last-32 and last-16 phases of the competition. As a result the Egyptian side have become the favourites to win the second edition of the Arab championship.

Having qualified to the last eight stage, the Dervishes also became the only Egyptian representative in the tournament following the exit of Zamalek and Ghazl Al-Mehalla.

The Dervishes edged Faisali of Jordan 2-1 on Thursday in Ismailia in their last game in Group C. Mohamed El- Yamani and Youssef Gamal scored for the home side in the first 15 minutes, while Mo'ayyad Salim hit the face-saver for the Jordanian side two minutes before time. The game carried little weight since the destiny of both teams had already been determined before the match. Faisali paid farewell to the championship after garnering only two points from six matches. However, Ismaili sought to continue their victorious run in the hopes of collecting 16 points out of a maximum 18 in the group phase. They also deemed it a warm-up to their African fixture on Sunday.

The Dervishes will clash with Ahli Jeddah of Saudi Arabia on 5, 6 or 7 April. Ahli qualified for the last eight phase after finishing in second place in Group D with eight points. They meet less often than ice and fire, yet the Arab paths of both sides appear destined to cross. Last year, they met twice in the group phase, drawing 2-2 in Jeddah; and Ismaili managed a hard-fought 1-0 win in Ismailia, eliminating the Saudi side from the competition. The first leg will be in Jeddah.

"I know it will be a very difficult encounter," said Mohsen Ortugal, Ismaili's German head coach. "They have a plethora of international players, but we will make the necessary preparations for this all-important game."

Despite fierce competition expected from the top Arab teams, the Dervishes are the favourites for this year's title. They have eliminated half the teams that played in last year's competition, including the Saudi sides who have never managed a victory over the Egyptian club in the tournament.

In other matches, Ittihad Jeddah will meet Mauludiyet of Algeria; Widad of Morocco will clash with Hilal of Saudi Arabia; Ahli of Qatar will play Tunisian Sfax. The dates have not yet been determined.