Al Ahly were held to a 2-1 defeat to South Africa’s Orlando Pirates in the final round of the CAF Champions League group stage. 

Cairo Stadium witnessed an end-to-end clash with the two sides aiming for the group summit after securing their tickets to the quarter-finals from the previous round. 

The match began with high intensity as the Reds pushed forward, searching for a breakthrough. However, a lack of precision in the final touch led to a goalless draw at the break. 

The Eagles maintained their strong approach in the second half, but the South Africans were the ones to break the deadlock in the 53rd minute through Relebohile Mofokeng. 

The Reds responded in the 69th minute through Hussein El Shahat, who chipped the ball over the goalkeeper after a precise pass from Karim El Debes. 

We kept searching for a second goal as a draw was enough for Orlando Pirates to finish at the top. Despite our attempts, Orlando regained the lead in the 83rd minute through Gilberto.

A late equalizer from Ramy Rabia was disallowed due to offside, and the match ended in a 1-2 win for the visitors.