Abou-Treika hat trick hero | Ahly 3-1 Stade Malien
Mohamed Abou-Treika, displaying his old brilliance, scored a hat-trick to lift Ahly to the African Champions League group stage at the expense of Stade Malien following a nervy 3-2 aggregate win on Monday.
Playing without their spectators for security reasons at Cairo’s Military Academy Stadium, Ahly surprisingly fell behind after 18 minutes when Oumar Kida capitalized on a defensive blunder to finish off a counter attack.
The stunning goal put the visitors on the verge of causing a huge upset, having defeated Ahly 1-0 in the first leg in Mali two weeks ago.
However, veteran playmaker Abou-Treika, who came on as a substitute before the break, scored from a free-kick, converted a penalty and clinically netted a third few minutes from time to hand six-time African champions Ahly a place among the last eight.
Stade Malien finished with ten men after Mohamed Koumare was sent off for a second bookable offence with six minutes remaining.
The Red Devils, the record winners of Africa’s premier club competition, are bidding to win the title for the first time since 2008.
Watch the goals here:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGL4wfm0Si0[/youtube]
Interview with Manuel Jose:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ov82kx8znpI[/youtube]
Full Match Review:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MPlcoJFxjA[/youtube]
