Al Ahly

Al Ahly

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Club World Cup: Al Ahly 2-1 Club America :

This could have been one of the more interesting games of the tournament, seeing as it featured two teams who were fairly evenly matched. But the first half, at least, was rather dire. The highlight was probably the small group of America supporters in the corner with their very big drum. If I have a headache at the end of this, I'm going to blame the Mexican FA.Club America had a few chances in the first half but just weren't able to score. I have a vague idea that I've commented here before about their woeful finishing.Al Ahly broke the deadlock a few minutes before halftime with a free kick from Mohamed Abou trika, which was curled in beautifully over the wall and past the keeper.Club America responded by bringing on Cuauhtemoc Blanco at halftime, and he created the equalizer with a perfectly flighted cross that Salvador Cabanas headed home. The game did spark to life a bit in the second half, but it was too late for me because I'd already fled inside to the media centre to warm up before the next match -- and bemoan the lack of anything resembling tea that might've helped with that.Club America kept pressing, but to no result. Quite a few of their best chances fell to Claudio Lopez, who'd come on partway through the second half, but each and every time he just barely failed to connect.Al Ahly went ahead again in the 79th minute, with another goal from Aboutrika -- who's currently the tournament's top scorer, with three goals in as many matches -- after he played a one-two with Flavio that split the Club America defence. The final result: 2-1 to the Egyptian team. That might have been a bit harsh on Club America, especially if you judged the teams only on their second-half performance, but credit to Al Ahly because they played hard from the very beginning of the game. (Here's a telling statistic: Al Ahly committed 25 fouls versus America's 10. They basically just went out there and kicked the shit out of them.)

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AUCKLAND'S TOUGH LESSON : (Nagoya, Japan December 10, 2006)

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Auckland City learned the harsh reality of professional football in their 2-0 loss to African champions Al Ahly in Sunday’s FIFA Club World Cup opener in Japan.Allan Jones’ Oceania amateurs produced a whole-hearted performance in Toyota City only to be undone by two pieces of individual brilliance from the Egyptian giants.
Angolan international Flavino handed the Cairo club a 51st minute lead when he pounced on a bungled clearance to rifle the ball past helpless Auckland stopper Ross Nicholson.
Flavino’s game-breaker cruelly came while Auckland were scrambling to replace Riki Van Steeden after the former All Whites defender hobbled off Toyota Stadium with a serious hamstring injury.
Mohamed Aboutrika put the result beyond doubt with a classy, curling 73rd minute free-kick that highlighted why the midfield conductor has been nominated alongside Drogba, Eto’o, Essien and Kanu for the coveted African player of the year title.
Auckland looked to have earned a way back into the quarterfinal when substitute Teruo Iwamoto appeared to have been dragged down in the box. But Saudi referee Khalil AL Ghamdi instead whistled against Auckland’s Japanese import, awarding Al Ahly a free-kick in their own penalty box.
The result left Auckland contemplating Friday’s playoff for fifth and sixth against the loser of Monday’s second quarterfinal between Club America (Mexico) and Jeonbuk Motors FC (South Korea), also in Toyko.
Auckland, bemused by more than one of the 28 free-kicks dished out against them, went to halftime with hope thanks to two, last-gasp tackles from standout central defender Jonathan Perry and midfield workhorse Paul Seaman.
But Van Steeden’s untimely injury was a costly blow, not only leaving Auckland temporarily reduced to 10 men but also under-mining Jones’ 56th minute-introduction of Iwamoto and winger Jason Hayne for Keryn Jordan and Liam Mulrooney respectivelyThere was no way back against the elegant Egyptians whose slick, one-touch football left the puffed NZFC champions chasing shadows and bemoaning their repeatedly wayward passing.
“We were never short of endeavour but we were just outplayed and it told on us on a couple of occasions,” Jones said.
“That’s the difference between our club and their club, our league and their league, our country and their country.
“There would be something seriously wrong with Egyptian and African football if they didn’t beat an amateur side. This has to be put into context…they are not African champions by mistake and there is 53 countries in that confederation.
“The only time we play at that pace is today – they play at that pace every time.”
While Al Ahly held 65 percent of the possession and out shot the Oceanian champions 19 to four, Auckland earned respectability with their tactical discipline.
There was no-one better than Perry and 23-year-old midfielder Chad Coombes who limited Aboutrika’s impact with a tireless man-making effort. Central defender Greg Uhlmann and All Whites wing back James Pritchett also had their moments as the gifted Aboutrika, striker Moteab Mohamed and Flavio put on a one-touch masterclass.
“In spite of our lack of match fitness I thought the attitude of our players was absolutely brilliant,” Jones said.“Off the ball I thought we played extremely well and with huge discipline, they never actually opened us up in free-play. But on the ball it was a bit of a struggle because A, we lack the technical range [of skills displayed by Al Ahly] and B, we lack match fitness at this level.
“The positive is that we’re not afraid to play at this level.”
Al Ahly now face Brazil’s Sport Club Internacional in Tokyo on Wednesday. The tournament’s second semifinal will pit either Club America or Jeonbuk Motors against European heavyweights FC Barcelona on Thursday. The final is on Sunday.
Auckland City 0 Al Ahly 2 (Flavio 51, Mohamed Aboutrika 73). Halftime: 0-0 Cautions: Sedik Mohamed 22, Keryn Jordan 26, Jonathan Perry 44, Riki Van Steeden 49, Jason Hayne 79, Mohamed Shawky 89. Crowd: 29,912.
Auckland City: 1-Ross Nicholson, 7-James Pritchett, 5-Jonathan Perry, 20-Greg Uhlmann, 21-Riki Van Steeden (3-Ben Sigmund 52), 6-Liam Mulrooney (2-Jason Hayne 56), 4-Paul Seaman, 19-Chad Coombes, 11-Neil Sykes (captain), 14-Keryn Jordan (16-Teruo Iwamoto 56), 10-Grant Young. Substitutes not used: 8-Jonathan Smith, 9-Paul Urlovic, 12-Richard Gillespie, 13-Cole Tinkler, 17-Paul Vodanovich, 18-Luiz Del Monte, 22-Bryan Little, 23-Mark Fulcher.
Al Ahly: 1-Essam El Hadary, 2-IsIam El Shater (8-Sedik Ahmed 89), 6-Wael Gomaa, 7-Shady Mohamed (captain), 9-Moteab Emad (3-Tarek Said 84), 12-Shadid Ahmed (16-Akwety Mensah 89), 13-Hossam Ashour, 17-Mohamed Shawky, 20-Sedik Mohamed, 22-Mohamed Aboutrika, 23-Flavio. Substitutes not used: 4-Emad El Nahas, 5-Ahmed El Sayed, 10-Wael Riad, 11-Mohamed Abdellah,14-Hassan Mosttafa, 15-Abdellah Galal, 18-Osama Hosny, 19-Amir Abdelhamid, 21-Nader El Sayed.

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Club World Cup: Al Ahly vs. Internacional

Internacional booked themselves a place in the final, where they'll face either Barcelona or Club America, with a 2-1 victory over Al Ahly. And despite my prediction yesterday, I think they were lucky to get the win.Internacional started with a 4-3-3 formation, while Al Ahly were lined up 5-3-2 -- so you can judge for yourself which team was planning an attacking versus a defensive strategy. But the Brazilians seemed to be nervous from the kickoff, with both teams pinging the ball around in midfield but neither side able to hold onto possession for long.Gradually Inter settled down, and they were rewarded with a goal from Alexandre Pato. Fernandao nearly put him through on goal, but Pato stumbled over the pass, and then as the defenders tried to play themselves out of trouble, Pato latched onto a loose ball and was free to slot it into the net. After that opening goal, however, Internacional slacked off a bit and their passing got sloppy. Al Ahly's best moves came from using their wingbacks and shifting the ball out wide, but they were let down by some terrible finishing, as they skied two or three chances over the crossbar and also hit the post.Eventually, though, the Egyptians' persistence paid off. A mishit clearance from the Internacional keeper caromed off a defender and out for a throw. From the throw, the cross was played in quickly and Flavio -- who was probably their best player, as you could tell by the way the Inter fans kept swearing at him -- nodded it into the back of the net. You might have expected the equalizer to galvanize the Brazilians, but Al Ahly continued to be the stronger team, whereas the Inter players persisted in shooting from 40 yards out to no apparent purpose. They were saved by substitute Luiz Adriano, who'd come on for Pato just a few minutes before after the Duck went down with cramp. The winning goal came from a corner, as Adriano connected with a header that just sneaked into the far corner. That seemed to sap the confidence from Al Ahly, and they never looked like taking the match to extra time (for which I was very grateful, since the cold had caught up with me once again). Since everyone else is doing it, my thoughts on 17-year-old wunderkind Pato: My first impression was not positive, since he was wearing yellow boots (don't get me started on my beliefs about the proper colours for football boots) and what looked like a dicky under his jersey. But the kid is undeniably talented, although he needs to learn to cool it with some of his little tricks -- like juggling the ball on his shoulder, which as far as I can see serves no purpose other than to invite the defender to kick you in the head. He kind of reminded me of Cristiano Ronaldo, but without the unfortunate overbite.And the moment you've all been waiting for, the Bad Hair of the Day Award: Today it goes to Internacional midfielder .