Egypt’s Al Ahly had to fire on all cylinders to overcome Esperance of Tunisia in the first leg of semi final clash in the Orange Caf Champions League on Sunday. The home side won 2-1 at the Cairo International Stadium.
Mohamed Fadl gave the home side a 38th minute lead before he was replaced in the second half by Mohamed Talaat.
In the 63rd minute Ahmed Fathy netted Al-Ahly’s second goal with a hard shot after receiving the neat pass from star player Mohamed Aboutrika.
As the Egyptians tried to press for more goals, Osama Eldaragy pulled one back for the Tunisian champions in the 73rd minute. Esperance coach Fawzy El-Binzarty tried to ring changes in substitutions but to no avail as they failed to get an equalizer.
Hossam Al-Badry, the Al-Ahly tactician said he was satisfied with the win. “It was a hard match and we tried to score more goals but my players failed to finish especially Mohamed Barakat and Mohamed Fadl who had clear chances,” explained Al-Badry.
He said his team conceded the goal because of a naïve defensive mistake which they will try to fix ahead of the return leg in Tunisia in two weeks time.
His counterpart Fawzy El-Binzarty, the Esperance coach said he was also happy with the result especially because his team had managed to score one goal. “The first goal put us under a lot of pressure especially when playing in the Cairo International Stadium under a lot of pressure from the fans as well. But I am happy we managed to score a goal to make the result much better for us,’ reasoned Binzarty who added that they will do their best to win the next match.
The second leg in Tunis will be played on October 16.
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