Al Ahly crush Al Ain in Intercontinental Cup
10/30/2024 04:19 AM
Al Ahly have advanced to the next round of the 2024 FIFA Intercontinental Cup (formerly the Club World Cup) after defeating Al Ain 3-0 on Tuesday.
The Red Eagles won the African-Asian-Pacific Cup (the club's 27th international title) with their triumph at the Cairo Stadium in front of more than 70,000 supporters.
Wessam Abou Ali opened the scoring in the first half with a solo effort. The Palestinian intercepted a misplaced pass from Al Ain’s defender, Yahia Nader, to his goalkeeper, putting the ball in the back of the net.
“Al Ahly played better than us. We conceded goals due to individual mistakes that simply can't happen in these types of games. It wasn't our night; everything we tried, they did better," said Al Ain’s manager Hernan Crespo.
Al Ahly had the upper hand in the first half and were even better in the second, with Emam Ashour doubling his team’s lead by finishing off a brilliant counter-attack with a perfect volley.
The Red Eagles were awarded a penalty in the added time, and Mohamed Magdy Afsha, who had just joined the game, successfully converted it to complete an emphatic victory.
Al Ahly’s triumph earned them a place in the semifinals of the Intercontinental Cup, scheduled in Doha in December.
“I hope this time we'll reach the Intercontinental Cup final. Al Ahly can achieve anything, our players are capable of pulling it off. Al Ahly is accustomed to competing in major tournaments and that's who we are, that's our character,” stated midfielder Marwan Atia.
The Champions of Africa will face Mexico’s Pachuca or the winner of the Copa Libertadores for a place in the final against the champions of Europe, Real Madrid.
