For only the second time since 2004, Al-Ahly is not the champion of Egypt. Zamalek won their 13th Egyptian Premier League title on Tuesday, running out comfortable 3-0 winners over El Entag El-Harby in the penultimate game of the season. The victory meant that there was nothing that Al-Ahly could do. Letting a 3-1 lead slip to draw 3-3 at El-Gouna didn’t matter as Al-Ahly fell six points behind with just one game to play.
The debate as to whether Zamalek won it or Al-Ahly lost will run and run but it is probably a bit of both. Much has been made of Al-Ahly’s multiple commitments and punishing schedule, and the team certainly looked tired on Tuesday in conceding two late goals. When the pressure was on Zamalek in the latter stages of the season, however, the White Knights went on an impressive run that resulted in 24 points out of a possible 24, scoring 16 goals and conceding two, to seal their first championship since 2015.
The decision of coach Patrice Carteron to leave Saudi Arabia’s Al-Taawoun in March for Cairo certainly looks to have been vindicated.
“I am very happy for our supporters and for the club,” said the Frenchman, the first from his country to win the title with Zamalek. “It’s a great honour to win the league title in Egypt. We made a remarkable finish winning eight consecutive matches. We finished strong.”
“It’s a very special season for me, especially that the board put its confidence in me after returning. We managed to stabilize the team, improve and overcome our rival,” he said.
Opposite number Pitso Mosimane cut a disappointed figure after surrendering the championship that he won last season.
There are mitigating circumstances in finishing second and the South African has pointed them out before. The Red Giants won the 2020 CAF Champions League which granted entry to the FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar in February, where they finished third after defeating South American champions Palmeiras of Brazil. Not only that, but the team was busy winning the 2021 continental title in July. This has meant a crowded schedule, fatigue and injuries.
“We have been playing non-stop for 10 months,” said Mosimane. “We have achieved bronze in the Club World Cup, won the African Championship twice and the African Super Cup. There have been a lot of demands on the players.”
The 57-year-old has a point. In the past two months, Al-Ahly has played 16 games, which is a punishing schedule anywhere in the world, but especially at the end of a busy season in the heat of the Egyptian summer. In contrast, Zamalek, who failed to get beyond the group stage in the Champions League, was in action just seven times in the same period. Such a schedule is enough to stay sharp but also to keep fresh.
Mosimane also said that he had to deal with other demands, such as six of his players being selected for the Olympics, compared to four from Zamalek.
“Al-Ahly players were with the national teams and finally in the Tokyo Olympics, and Al-Ahly is the biggest supporter of the teams, but in the end we are human and it is natural to complain about stress and the pressure of matches.”
Now the focus of the new champions must be on winning African title a sixth time to close the gap on Al-Ahly’s 10.
Interestingly, former Zamalek captain Khaled Al-Ghandour argued this week that it is easier to be champions in Africa than in Egypt.
“The Egyptian Premier League is 200 times more difficult than CAF Champions League, not more important but more difficult,” Al-Ghandour said. “We play with teams from weaker African national leagues that don’t have international players among their ranks, with the exception of Egypt and Tunisia. Even countries like Algeria and Morocco have most of their international players abroad.”
While Al-Ahly has excuses, it is a club that expects to be champions of Egypt and it remains to be seen whether Mosimane stays. Since taking the job last September, the former South African boss does not look to have settled despite the trophies he has won.
“Al-Ahly is a great team, and it will not look back, but forward, and it will come back much stronger,” he said. “We have made great achievements in the last 10 months. Yes, we lost the league, but we also achieved great trophies and beat big clubs. We move forward.”
As runners-up, not champions. The title belongs to Zamalek which should make next season all the more fascinating.
