African champions Ahli outclassed by Sudan's Hilal
الأحد، 19 أغسطس 2007 - 22:28
كتب : Omar AbdelAziz
The Sudanese champions now top the group with nine points, leading Ahli on head-to-head results.
Dario Khan broke the deadlock in the 58th minute with a smart header before Hassan Eshag’s bullet doubled the lead ten minutes later.
Ezeh Godwin proved to be too skillful for Ahli’s defenders to handle as he put the icing on the cake four minutes from time.
The home side came close on the half-hour mark after Kelchi Osunwa found himself one-on-one with Ahli keeper Essam Al-Hadari, but the Egypt guardian bravely blocked his effort.
At the stroke of half-time, Mohamed Barakat released Emad Meteb, who was through on goal, but the Ahli striker’s poor control allowed the Sudanese defenders to recover.
Meteb, who is targeted by Middlesbrough, had no choice but to pass the ball to Mohamed Abou-Treika, whose acute shot was easily thwarted by keeper Moez Mahjoub.
Hilal pushed the tempo in the second-half, and after 58 minutes, Khan headed in Youssef Mohamed's corner for the opener.
Ahli suffered a double blow after losing star man Abou-Treika seven minutes after the Hilal goal when the Egypt playmaker was harshly tackled by a Hilal defender.
The African champions were shocked moments after Abou-Treika's substitution with a superb dink from Eshag.
The well-built midfielder launched a 35-yard scorcher to beat Al-Hadari in the 68th minute for Hilal's second.
Nigerian striker Godwin wrapped up the victory four minutes from time when he burst his way into the Ahli backline, who were caught napping, before slotting home past Al-Hadari.
Hilal's first goal
Hilal's second goal
Hilal's third goal