Soccer Football - CAF Champions League - Final - Al Ahly vs Wydad Casablanca - Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt - October 28, 2017 Al Ahly's Sherif Ekramy and team mates look dejected after conceding the first goal Reuters
Ahly coach Hossam El-Badry has announced the squad for the second leg of the African Champions League final against Wydad Casablanca away in Morocco on Saturday.
Despite being under rehabilitation after recovering from recent injuries, key midfielder Walid Soliman and defenders Rami Rabia and Mohamed Naguib were all called up for the big event.
El-Badry's key player Hossam Ashour has been dropped from the squad due to a groin muscle injury he sustained early in October that also saw him sidelined him during the final’s first leg.
Tunisian left-winger Ali Maaloul has been sidelined as well due to an injury he sustained in the first leg.
The record-holders with eight trophies failed to take a home advantage over Wydad in the first leg, despite their territorial dominance, losing the lead to settle for a 1-1 draw last Saturday.
They need to defeat one-time champions Wydad at Mohamed V Stadium in Casablanca, and must score an away goal to stand a chance of lifting their first Champions League trophy since 2013.
The Ahly players’ morale is reportedly high after thousands of fans showed support for them during a Tuesday training session, upon El-Badry's request. The number of fans who showed up was so great that the coach was forced to cancel the training due to security concerns.
The Ahly squad was announced as follows:
Goalkeepers: Sherif Ekramy, Ahmed Adel, Mohamed El-Shenawy
Defenders: Mohamed Hani, Ahmed Fathi, Rami Raia, Mohamed Naguib, Saad Samir, Hussein El-Sayed, Sabri Rahil
Midfielders: Amr Solaya, Hisham Mohamed, Moemen Zakareya, Walid Soliman, Karim 'Nedved', Mido Gaber, Ahmed Hamoudy, Ahmed El-Shiekh
Strikers: Junior Ajayi, Emad Meteb, Walid Azro
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