Photo courtesy of Al Ahly FC
Ahly returned from Tizi Ouzou with a goalless draw in the fifth round of Group B, a result that lifted the Egyptian champions to nine points and guaranteed their place in the knockout stage with one match remaining.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Thorup said qualification had been the team’s primary target from the outset of a demanding group campaign.
“We knew there would be six difficult matches in this group, and our objective from the start was to qualify for the quarter-finals,” the Danish coach said.
Thorup was critical of his team’s display, particularly before the break, admitting the result owed much to fortune. “I was not satisfied with the performance, especially in the first half, and we must admit that we were lucky to come away with a draw,” he said. “But sometimes, when you can’t win, you have to make sure you don’t lose.”
He noted that JS Kabylie were the better side early on, missing several chances.
“They played a very strong match, especially in the first half, when they missed two or three opportunities, and they were better than in the match played in Egypt,” Thorup said, adding that the hosts failed to create clear chances after the interval.
The Ahly coach revealed that a tactical shift at half-time was aimed solely at securing the point needed for qualification.
“We never enter a match aiming for a draw, but I told the players at half-time that we must not lose,” he said. “A draw was the best result to qualify, which is why we played with five defenders. We created two counter-attacking chances in the second half but failed to score.”
Thorup stressed that JS Kabylie's performance, despite their elimination, underlined the difficulty of the group.
“This shows how strong the group we are in really is,” he said, noting that Ahly are constantly under pressure due to expectations of victory.
He also pointed to the absence of key players as a contributing factor.
“We lost two of the most important players in the team, Zizo and Trezeguet,” Thorup said. “Losing them affects any team, and whoever replaces them must perform well.”
Ahly will face Morocco’s AS FAR on 15 February in the final group-stage match to determine the top spot in Group B.
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