CAIRO – Cairo giants Al-Ahly and Zamalek were held to goalless draws in the 9th week of the Egyptian Premier League.
Hosts Al-Ahly was held to a 0-0 draw against Smouha at Al-Salam Stadium.
Marcel Koller, Al-Ahly’s coach said that he had never seen a team plays like Smouha, whether when he was a player or a coach.
“We did not play well tonight and we did not create many chances. We faced a very defensive team, and during the second-half, we pushed forward to score. However, we did not create many chances and could not score.”
“The game’s time was wasted. I have never seen a game like that in my career,” the Swiss boss noted.
“Despite all the time that was wasted, the referee gave two minutes only in the stoppage time of the first half and five minutes in the second-half,” Koller said according to the club official website.
“It will be better for Egyptian football if everyone focused only on playing and not wasting the time.”
The 61-year-old tactician concluded by sending a message to the fans, underlining the importance of their support and that the team will need them more in the upcoming period.
Last season, Al-Ahly finished the season in the 3rd place in the Egyptian Premier League table with 70 points, seven points behind champions Zamalek.
The Red Devils’ players started the game with frontline pressure, as they were keen to break the deadlock early.
They had several scoring chances, but Smouha’s defenders were solid enough to block their attempts.
Smouha tried to bounce back and deepened on the counterattacks, but Al-Ahly’s defenders managed to stop all their attempts.
The Red Devils kept pushing and searching for the winner until the referee blew his final whistle to declare a 0-0 draw.
The draw kept Al-Ahly on top of the domestic league with 23 points from 9 matches as Smouha remained at 13th place with 8 points from 9 matches.
At Arab Contractors Stadium, Zamalek were held to a goalless draw by Arab Contractors.
Zamalek is now second in the table with 21 points from 9 matches, one behind leaders Ahly as Arab Contractors stayed in 7th place with 12 points from 9 matches.
