Match Report: Al Ahly 4-0 AS SONIDEP
Al Ahly defeated AS SONIDEP 4-0 in the second leg of the CAF Champions League round of 32 on Tuesday at Al Ahly Stadium.
The Red Eagles managed to dominate all parts of the game in the early minutes of the first half. We had the chance to score at the start of the game, but AS SONIDEP’s defense blocked the shot.
In the 9th minute, our striker Ahmed Rayan had a clear chance to score the opening goal in the game; however, his header hit the bar.
Four minutes later, Taher Mohamed Taher’s shot gave us the lead in the match. Our veteran, Walid Soliman provided an amazing pass to Taher, who managed to find the target.
Rayan had another scoring opportunity in the 17th minute, but he was fouled by AS SONIDEP’s goalkeeper who was sent off.
Thus, forcing our opponent to make a substitution and play with 10 men for the remainder of the game. Soliman then performed a free-kick which went over the bar.
Our players controlled the tempo, with Soliman providing key passes to break AS SONIDEP’s defense.
In 33rd minute, AS SONIDEP’s player Mourtala Yahaya received the ball in the middle of the pitch and passed through our midfield, shooting the ball off target.
Our players then had another chance to add the second goal, when Mohamed Sherif shot the ball over the bar.
With 8 minutes remaining in the first half, Soliman doubled the score for Al Ahly after receiving a wonderful cross from Al Ahly’s left-back Ali Maaloul.
After scoring the second goal, Al Ahly’s midfielder Hamdy Fathy had a chance to score his first goal in the game, but his effort missed the target.
The final minutes of the first half passed by without any change in the score, and the referee blew his half time whistle.
The second half started with our manager Pitso Mosimane making three substitutions; with Ayman Ashraf, Akram Tawfik, and Kahraba taking the place of Hamdy Fathy, Mohamed Sherif, and Ali Maaloul.
After 11 minutes in the second half, our midfielder Dieng passed the ball to Kahraba, whose shot was saved by AS SONIDEP’s goalkeeper.
A few minutes later, Ayman Ashraf made an important cross to Ahmed Rayan; however, Rayan’s header went off target.
In the 60th minute, Taher Mohamed Taher was substituted by Mohamed Magdy Afsha who just recovered from COVID-19.
Seven minutes later, Al Ahly received a penalty, which was converted successfully into the net by our defender Badr Benoun.
Following our third goal in the game, Saad Samir entered the game, instead of Badr Benoun, for the first time after recovering from his injury.
With less than 30 minutes remaining in the game, Kahraba had an important chance to add his name in the score sheet, but the AS SONIDEP’s goalkeeper blocked Kahraba’s shot.
The Red Eagles continued their efforts in increasing the score and it was not until the 90th minute when Kahraba managed to score Al Ahly’s fourth goal in the game.
The referee then blew his full-time whistle to grant Al Ahly a precious 4-0 victory, thus qualifying the team to the CAF Champions League group stage.
