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Are El Shahat clinging to a golden opportunity?
On a night that knew only the language of adults, Egypt’s Al-Ahly chose to send their most important message of the season from the heart of a summit that does not accept half measures.
The three goals against arch-rivals Zamalek weren’t just to secure full points in the league race, but rather it was a clear statement of Al-Ahly’s intentions in the African battle.
The red giants have managed to turn the page of doubt many times this season, which kept them out of the competition, the most recent loss to the Pyramids, and opened a new door, headlined by being fully prepared to fight to join the African Champions League.
Between defensive stability and offensive efficiency, Al-Ahli seemed to be laying the foundation for a new project not seen during the season’s competition, the name of which is that the road to African glory begins with domestic control.
The Summit does not recognize pre-calculations
Despite Al-Ahly’s slump and defeat to Pyramid, the Red Giants pulled off a big and convincing win over arch-rivals Zamalek in a fiery summit clash in the fifth round of the Egyptian League finals to consolidate their position in the title race and deliver a strong blow to their rivals.
“Al Ahli” controlled the course of the match from the beginning and managed to turn their advantage into early goals. Ashraf Bin Sharqi opened the scoring in the 18th minute after a quick, brilliant strike, then Hussein El-Shahat scored the second in the 32nd minute with a powerful strike, capitalizing on a defensive error by Zamalek.
In a second half that saw two penalties wasted (one for each team), Ben Sharkey came back to score the third goal in the 74th minute to end the match with a clean sheet that Zamalek did not find unanswered.
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The summit stats justify Al-Ahly
Although Zamalek had a higher possession rate of 56% compared to Al-Ahly’s 44%, Al-Ahli were the most dangerous and effective. He shot 15 times to the White Knight’s 13.
Al-Ahly created three clear chances compared to just one for the Whites, while the red giants were superior in touches in the box, reflecting their clear attacking control.
Ashraf Bin Sharqi was the undisputed star of the match after scoring twice and creating a constant threat, while Hussain Al-Shahat also shone with his goal and clear activity in midfield and attack. On the other hand, Zamalek’s defense looked fragile and disorganized in the face of the pace and organization of Al-Ahly’s attacks.
Al-Ahli managed to exploit the spaces behind Zamalek’s defense and imposed their rhythm on the match despite having little possession.
As for Zamalek, they failed to create any real chances in Al-Ahly’s goal and paid the price for heavy defensive mistakes. This victory provides Al-Ahly with a strong morale boost ahead of the upcoming matches.
A solid defense puts Al-Ahly in a competitive ring
Al-Ahly’s 3-0 win over Zamalek revived their chances of qualifying for the next round of the African Champions League.
The Red Fort side lifted their tally to 47 points in third place in the Egyptian league table, closing the gap on leaders Zamalek and runners-up Pyramids to three points with two rounds to go in the crowning stage.
The win mathematically put Al-Ahli back into contention for the domestic title, which is a direct way of guaranteeing a place in the continental championship as it grants an automatic qualification card.
While third place does not guarantee direct Champions League qualification, Al-Ahly’s victory revived their hopes of at least finishing second, which gives Egypt a second place in the competition.
Al-Ahli now partly have their own destiny in their hands as they need to win their remaining two matches, slipping away with either Pyramid or Zamalek, to secure an African spot without waiting for complicated calculations.
The victory at the summit gave the Red Giants a huge morale boost and sent a message that the conflict is not yet resolved and that the Africa card will be taken off the field in the final two rounds.
Zizu’s absence did not make Al-Ahli feel inferior
Although Ahmed Sayed “Zizou” has become one of Al-Ahly’s most important attacking weapons this season, his absence from the starting line-up at Zamalek’s summit has opened the door for Yes Torop to redistribute roles in a way that gives the team greater tactical flexibility.
Zizou relies on individual solutions and penetration down the flanks, but his absence has forced the coaching staff to rely on team play and movement without the ball as Al-Ahli looked more balanced in defensive rebounding with Hussein Al-Shahat (who has lost his place in the starting line-up of late) replacing Zizou and the midfielders bulking up the halves.
Introducing Hussein El-Shahat to start in place of Zizou was a highlight of the match. With his vast experience at the summits, he produced a disciplined tactical performance as he committed to defensive duties to stop Zamalek’s left front, while also using his pace and intelligence to move behind the Whites’ defence.
Also, his understanding with the full-backs and forwards created an active right-front that wore down Zamalek for 90 minutes, and created a numerical surge that led to the second goal. Therefore, it can be said that Zizu’s absence did not make Al-Ahli feel inferior, but rather gave Al-Shahat an opportunity to prove that the depth of the team’s roster is able to compensate for any absence and turn it into an advantage in the team’s favor.
Hossam Abdel Majid.. an unforgettable night in the book of summit mistakes
Zamalek defender Hossam Abdel Majid did not have the best night for White Castle at the Al-Ahli summit as the young defender made several mistakes that cost his team dearly on both technical and moral levels.
The most notable of these errors came in the 55th minute when he missed a penalty which was enough to bring Zamalek back into the game and reduce the deficit. The poor strike lacked focus and determination and gave Al Ahli a double morale boost while increasing the psychological pressure on their teammates on the pitch.
Defensively, Abdel Majid suffered from poor positioning on more than one occasion, most notably during Al-Ahly’s second goal, when he failed to track the striker and left space to receive and shoot without real fouling. His interventions were also characterized by swinging in crosses, which gave Al-Ahly’s forwards an advantage in the air and second balls.
These individual lapses exposed the defender’s lack of experience in dealing with the pressure of key matches and directly contributed to Zamalek losing their balance and losing the summit with three clean sheets.
