LIVE: Al Ahly v Ismaily | Egyptian League Derby
K.O. 11:00 ET Canada-USA
Ahly will be looking to put the woes of the past two seasons aside as they kick off their bid to dethrone champions Zamalek in the Egyptian Premier League when they meet foes Ismaily on Wednesday.
The Red Devils, the runaway record league winners with 42 triumphs, surrendered the title twice to perennial Cairo rivals Zamalek when they seemed to have the upper hand for long stretches.
A number of factors were cited for the losses, including fatigue and a lack of creativity in the final third.
This season, however, they had proper time to rest, signed Brazilian forward Bruno Savio and Egyptian playmaker Mostafa Saad to shore up their attack and brought in Swiss coach Marcel Koller to turn around their fortunes.
Koller’s tenure kicked off in convincing fashion, with Ahly defeating Tunisia’s US Monastir 4-0 on aggregate to qualify for the African Champions League group stage.
The new-found belief will come to a real test when Ahly face Ismaily, who are also eyeing a fresh start after flirting with the unthinkable prospect of being relegated last season.
Ismaily, who won the last of their three league titles in 2002, made wholesale changes despite their mounting financial problems, signing some experienced players such as former Zamalek striker Bassem Morsi, ex-Ahly playmaker Saleh Gomaa and Tunisian right-back Hamdi Nagguez
The trio will be available when Ismaily play Ahly. Both sides also met in last season’s league opener, with Ahly inflicting a 4-0 loss on the Dervishes.
LIVE: Al Ahly v Ismaily | Egyptian League Derby
K.O. 11:00 ET Canada-USA
