Ahly striker Amr Gamal celebrating after scoring (Photo: Ahram)
Ahly will be looking to seal qualification for the Egyptian Premier League's final phase when they take on Ghazl El-Mahalla at Alexandria's Max Stadium on Sunday.
The Reds are expected to ease to victory over their lowly opponents, who have been unable to end a seven-match winless streak, a run that condemned them to third from bottom of Group A table.
A win for Ahly is needed to overhaul leaders Smouha at the summit and secure qualification for the four-team mini-league phase, which comprises the winners and runners-up of Groups A and B.
Should Ahly beat Mahalla, they will amass their 36th point to go six clear of third-placed Ittihad – a gap that even if the Alexandrians managed to bridge would still see the Cairo side go through due to a better head-to-head record.
Ahly's interim coach Fathi Mabrouk will also be aiming for his second win in three games after taking over at the club early this month when he replaced manager Mohamed Youssef.
On the other side, Mahalla – who are forced to play away from their home stadium due to security reasons - will be hoping to avoid defeat by Ahly in an attempt to pull themselves out of the drop zone.
Relegation, however, has yet to be confirmed – with the Egyptian FA pondering calling off demotion to the second division.
Team news
Ahly will have to do without top-scorer Abdallah El-Saied, who has been ruled out of the game due to a foot problem.
Egypt full-back Sayed Moawad will also not be available with a hamstring complaint.
(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)
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