Ahly gave their fans a glimmer of hope after a string of disappointing results, crushing third-from-bottom Nasr 3-0 in the Egyptian Premier League on Wednesday to hand coach Fathi Mabrouk a winning start.
The Red Devils dismissed Spanish coach Juan Garrido after their hopes of winning the league for a record-equaling ninth successive time were jeopardized following a 1-0 defeat by Arab Contractors last week.
Mabrouk, who had two previous spells in charge of Ahly as a caretaker boss, took over on a permanent basis for the first time. He was credited for helping them win the league last season following the departure of Mohamed Youssef just before the final playoff phase.
They also exited the African Champions League after losing to Morocco's Moghreb Tetouan on penalties in the last 16, leaving Ahly's board with no option but to sack Garrido, given the anger of their passionate fans.
Mahmoud Trezeguet, who has suffered a dip in form lately, scored twice and Abdallah El-Saied had a hand in all of the three first-half goals as Ahly comfortably brushed aside Nasr, although their defensive frailties were also evident.
Trezeguet opened the scoring on the quarter-hour mark with a first-timer from inside the area after full-back Bassem Ali flicked a free-kick from Abdallah El-Saied into his path.
He added the second on 26 minutes, superbly exchanging passes with El-Saied to penetrate into the area and find the bottom corner with a fine chip from an acute angle.
Winger Moemen Zakareya put the result beyond doubt with a powerful shot from inside the area after being fed by another astute pass from playmaker El-Saied, who was one of Ahly's best performers.
Ahly lie third in the table with 49 points, eight behind joint leaders Zamalek and ENNPI. However, Zamalek played one game less than Ahly and three less than ENPPI.
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