RELIVE: Ahly vs Sfaxien (African Super Cup)
Ahram Online, Thursday 20 Feb 2014
Ahram Online provides live updates of Thursday's African Super Cup clash between Egyptian champions Ahly and Tunisian heavyweights Club Sfaxien


AHLY WIN SIXTH AFRICAN SUPER CUP

FULL TIME: Ahly 3-2 Sfaxien

90+6 Referee blows final whistle.

90 What a chance for Sfaxien. Defender Boulaabi rose for the corner but missed the target from inside the box.

89Final sub for Ahly as defender Saad Samir replaces Gedo.

89 Sfaxien piling up pressure on Ahly in the final minutes

85 Yedan takes a free kick on the right...his poweful shot goes straight at the keeper

83 Ekramy comes out of goal in wrong timing during a corner kick, but luckily the headed ball goes wide

81 Gamal makes way for Trezeguet as manager Youssef looks to defend his slender lead

79 Goal! Ben Youssef hits a magnificent strike after tricking Naguib outside the box to make it 3-2...A wonderful goal indeed!

75 Khenissi once again latches onto a long through ball inside the box but misses the target

71 Ekramy superbly denies a clear-on-goal Khenissi, who sneaked behind Gomaa to go one on one

69 Amr Gamal scores his second of the night after rising unmarked to head in Yedan's pin-point cross from the left....

68 GOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLLL AHLY THREE!!!!

67 New-signing Yedan comes in for the ineffectual El-Saied, who should have been replaced much earlier!

65 Khenissi replaces Moncer for the Tunisians second substitution of the night

63 Maaloul smashes home the penalty, sending keeper Ekramy the wrong way

62 Penalty for Sfaxien! Sayed Moawad tackles Ben Youssef inside the area, only for the ref to point to the spot.

60 Free kick for the visitors...awfully executed!

54 Amr Gamal gets a foot into El-Saied's free kick to prod home past the keeper, doubling Ahly's lead

54 GOAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLL AHLY TWO!!!

53 The lively Gedo wins a free kick nearly 25 yards away

50 The Sfaxien bench is so frustrated for that staggering miss!

50 What a chance!!! Maaloul breaks clear to go one on one with Ekramy but the ball goes out for a corner after hitting the advancing keeper!

Second half is underway

45+2 the referee blows the whistle ending the first half...

45 A free kick for Sfaxien from nearly 30 yards but the ball hits the wall!

42 Gedo superbly running down the channels, an excellent game from the Ahly forward

41 Gomaa makes a timely interception inside the six-yard box before Ekramy makes a double save with Ben Youssef pressing on him...

40 The tempo of the game slows down, with five minutes remaining

36 Shehab intercepts a dangerous cut back from the in-form Ben Youssef, who superbly skipped past Fathy

33 Gedo proving a handful inside the box, battling for every ball falling in

32 Rabia tries his luck from distance...blasts wide!

30 A half an hour elapsed, Ahly go ahead through Gedo but still struggling in midfield despite playing with three men in that area

28 Moncer hits a low strike from outside the box that goes narrowly off the post...

27 Amr Gamal cautioned after a fierce tackle against an opponent

25 There seems a suspicion of offside though...

23Gedo latches onto a diagonal cross by Fathy to control the ball before slotting past the keeper...

23 GOAAAAAAALLLLLLLL GEDO GIVES AHLY THE LEAD!!!!

22 A great tackle by Maaloul to dispossess Fathy on the right in the final third

20 Game mainly restricted to midfield...

15 After 15 minutes, Sfaxien look dangerous on the counter while Ahly have yet to pose real threat on goal

14 Gedo fails to connect with Fathi's cross from the right...

12 TV replays show that Ahly should have been awarded a penalty early in the match

12 Ahly pressing high up the pitch while their backline remains deep behind, leaving pockets of spaces available for the Tunisians

10 Ben Youssef in another attack for Sfaxien, whose shot misses the target once again!

8 Ben Youssef strikes after breaking inside the area but sees his effort flow wide

7 Upfield punt from Ekramy...ends up with throw in for the visitors

5 The first corner for Ahly...

3 Foul for Ahly near the halfway line...

The game gets underway

18:55 Ahly fan favorite coach Manuel Jose is attending the game from the stands, with specualtion rife that he is set for a fourth stint at the Reds' helm

18:50 Players of both teams are shaking hands now

18:47 Ahly's ultras fans are lifting huge banners for retired talismanic midfielder Mohamed Abou-Treika

18:45 Both teams now lining up for the national anthem.

18:35 Players are warming up now. Ahly players seem under a lot of pressure following a string of poor results in the league.

18:30 Ahly's coach Mohamed Youssef is adopting a cautious approach to the game using three central midfielders in Ashour, Fathi and Ahmed hoping to close down spaces in front of his rivals.

18:20 More than 30 000 supporters are filling the stadium with a feverish atmosphere with less than 40 minutes to go.

18:00 The last time Sfaxien beat Ahly was in 2006 in the Champions League group stage, with the Tunisians winning 1-0 at home back then.

Line ups:

Ahly: Sherif Ekramy, Ahmed Fathy, Wael Gomaa, Mohamed Naguib, Sayed Moawad, Shehab Ahmed, Ramy Rabia, Hossam Ashour, Mohamed "Gedo" Nagy, Abdallah El-Saied, Amr Gamal,

Sfaxien: Rami Jridi, Maher Hannachi, Ali Maaloul, Hamza Chatbri, Bassem Boulaabi, Mahmoud Ben Salah,Ferjani Sassi,Wassim Kamoun,Mohamed Ali Moncer,Fakhreddine Ben Youssef, Idrissa Kouyate.

17:00 Ahly last met Sfaxien in the 2009 Super Cup, where the Cairo giants ran out 2-1 winners, courtesy of a brace from Angolan frontman Flavio

16:00 Egypt are the most successful country in the competition with eight titles followed by three for Tunisia. Ahly have lifted the trophy five times and Cairo neighbours Zamalek three times.

15:00 Ahly are hoping to be the first club to win successive titles twice. The Cairo club, Nigerians Enyimba and Congolese TP Mazembe have achieved the feat once.

14:00 Ahly are the record Super Cup winners with five titles under their belt, with the last coming in February 2013 when they beat AC Leopards of Congo 2-1 in Alexandria.

Stay tuned. Game starts at 19:00 Cairo time (GMT+2)

Venue:

Cairo stadium, Egypt.

Officials:

Desire Normandiez Doue (Ivory Coast)

(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at@AO_Sportsand on Facebook atAhramOnlineSports.)

https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/94755.aspx