Former Tottenham manager Martin Jol arrives to attend a press conference in Al-Ahly club as he was unveiled as the new coach for Egyptian Premier League leaders Al-Ahly in Cairo, Egypt, March 1, 2016 (Reuters)
Ahly will be looking to give newly-appointed manager Martin Jol a winning debut when they take on fourth-placed Maqassa in the Egyptian league at Alexandria's Borg El-Arab Stadium on Saturday.
Leading the league table with 44 points, six clear of closest rivals Zamalek who lost 3-1 to El-Entag El-Harby on Thursday, the Reds will be keen to assert their title credentials against resilient Maqassa this time around.
Maqassa, however, have not been quite enjoying a good run of league fixtures of late, failing to bag a single win in their last four games – including a thrilling 4-3 defeat bySmouha.
But on the other hand, the Fayoum-based side have made an auspicious start to their maiden African competition – having brushed aside Ethiopia's Defense 6-1 on aggregate to make it to the CAF Confederation Cup round of 32.
Ahly, meanwhile, will bear in mind that their opponents have managed to inflict defeat on them in the reverse fixture this season, a 1-0 loss in November last year.
Former Tottenham boss Jol will also be keen to kick off his new managerial stint in good fashion, after replacing interim coach Abdel-Aziz Abdel-Shafi 'Zizo' who guided Ahly to five wins and three draws in eight games.
But Jol may still have to cope without some major absences in the team, with first-choice goalie Sherif Ekramy nursing a hamstring injury sustained during the 2-2 draw with Masry.
Substitute Ahmed Adel did not look particularly convincing against Masry, as the understudy keeper is set to stand between the sticks against Maqassa.
Veteran striker Emad Meteb is also out with a hamstring complaint, which forced him to miss the last week's 2-0 win over Petrojet, while defender Ahmed Hegazy has been cleared to play after picking up a lip injury of late.
Maqassa are 11 points behind Ahly in the league table.
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