CAF Champions League:
Al Ahly won 2-1 in the first leg of the CAF Champions League final at the Cairo International Stadium on Sunday night, maintaining their unblemished home record against Wydad Casablanca.
Percy Tau gave Marcel Koller’s team the lead at the conclusion of the first half as they took advantage of sloppy marking, and Kahraba doubled their lead shortly before the hour mark.
Saifeddine Bouhra came off the bench to lessen the Red Castle’s deficit with a priceless away goal minutes from time after they had earlier been denied by the goal frame.
In the tournament, Al Ahly had never lost to Wydad at home, but their head-to-head record in the final was less impressive because they had lost both meetings in 2017 and 2022.
The visitors controlled the most of the possession in the first half, but they struggled to generate many chances as Sven Vandenbroeck’s squad made superior use of the ball and often threatened.
On minute 18, Kahraba had his first serious attempt at scoring, but Youssef El Motie easily stopped his effort from inside the box.
The two African powers engaged in a tough struggle for control of the midfield for the whole of the first half until the game finally picked up in the last five minutes.
Reda Jaadi’s effort from inside the box in the 40th minute, Ayoub El Amloud’s long-range attempt that missed the left post seconds later, and Junior Sambou’s misdirected header from a corner in the 41st minute were all chances that the visitors had.
A SMART SAVE:
However, in extra time, Tau snuck into the area and beat El Motie with a header after receiving a cross from Hussein El Shahat, catching the Red Castle off guard.
In the seventh minute of extra time, Yahia Attiyat Allah almost gave them a quick response with a long-range shot that pushed Shobeir into an outstanding save.
El Amloud failed to keep his header down in the 47th minute, and shortly after that, Yahya Jabrane set up Zouhair El Moutaraji, who blasted just wide of the near post from an angle on the left. Wydad came out of the gates firing in the second half as they fought for an equaliser.
In the 52nd minute, Kahraba lined up a shot from a distance that forced a great save from El Motie. However, the striker was not to be denied as he buried the ball into the roof of the net from within the area on the 59th minute after being found by El Shahat.
Attiyat Allah saw his long-range attempt hit the right post, and the woodwork then came to the Red Eagles’ rescue seconds later. El Motie was once more called into action on the 67th minute to save El Shahat’s long-range drive.
On minute 72, Kahraba forced another deft stop from El Motie with a shot from within the box, and on minute 79, Shobeir had to make a save against an effort from El Amloud from the right side of the box.
Four minutes from time, substitute Bouhra grabbed onto a cross from Sambou inside the area and blasted his effort into the upper left corner of the goal, giving Wydad the goal they had been threatening.
Al Ahly survived the last few seconds to advance with a slim lead to the second leg at the Mohammed V Stadium on June 11.
Al Ahly (1) 2 (Kahraba 59′, Tau 45+4′)
Wydad (86′): Bouhra (1)
A. Maaloul, M. Attia, P. Tau, A. Dieng, H. Fathy, H. El Shahat (A. Abdel Kader 87′), and Kahraba (M. Sherif 87′) are all members of Al Ahly.
A. Farhane, A. Zola, Y. Attiyat Allah, R. Jaadi, Y. Jabrane, J. Daoudi, A. El Hassouni (M. Ounajem 73′), J. Sambou, and Z. El Moutaraji for Wydad Casablanca (S. Bouhra 82′).
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