Al-Ahly will be seeking to restore the pride of Egyptian football in this weekend’s Orange CAF Champions League semi-final second leg clash against Coton Sport of Cameroon.
Match info: Venue El Gouna Stadium / Egypt | Date & Time: 20 Oct 2013 – 14:30 (CLT)
Egypt is still mourning the 6-1 drubbing of the Pharaohs by the Black Stars of Ghana in the 2014 FIFA World Cup playoff last Tuesday in Kumasi. Whilst their chances of making it to the Mundial next year in Brazil look almost shattered, Ahly’s involvement in the premier continental club championship remains the only source of hope to Egyptians.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPVxz02i4m0[/youtube]Al Ahly need at least a barren draw to go through, Coton Sport must score to remain in contention. Frenchman Sebastien Desabre and his charges will be hoping to overturn the books this time and adding on to the problems of Egyptian football at the moment.
The Cameroonians lost to Ahly in the final of the 2008 edition, and the surviving duo from that squad, Kingue Pondo and Bapidi Fils, remain upbeat about their chances.
“Our chances are good and we have to stay focused,” Pondo and Fils sounded ahead of the game.
Emad Meteb has been included in Ahly’s 24-man squad for the game against Cameroonian side Coton Sport in the second leg of the CAF Champions League semifinal on Sunday.
Egypt and Ahly striker Meteb recently recovered from back surgery that sidelined him for three months. He has returned to full training and scored in a recent friendly.
The seven-time winners of the CAF Champions League trophy play Coton Sport in Egypt on 20 October. They are favourites to reach the final for the second consecutive year after holding the Cameroonian side to a 1-1 draw in Garoua in the first leg.
Ahly’s 24-man squad for the Coton Sport game:
Goalkeepers: Sherif Ekrami, Mamhoud Abou El-Soud and Ahmed Adel Abdel-Menem
Defenders: Ahmed Fathi,Sherif Abdel-Fadil, Wael Gomaa, Mohamed Naguib, Saad Samir, Ahmed Shedid, Sayed Mowad, Ahmed Nabil ‘Manga’
Midfielders: Rami Rabia, Hossam Ashour, Shehab Ahmed, Ahmed Shokry, Mahmoud Trezeguet, Abullah El-Said, Walid Soliman and Mohamed Abou Treika
Strikers: Dominique Da Silva,Amr Gamal, Emad Meteb, Ahmed Abdel-Zaher and El-Sayed Hamdy.
