I'm not intimidated by Ahli, says Sfaxien's Mahjoub

الخميس، 19 أكتوبر 2006 - 14:11

كتب : Mohamed Sabe

Mahjoub to coach Ismaili

Tunis-Murad Teyeb: Sfaxien coach Murad Majhoub said that he is simply "unimpressed or intimidated" by African champions Ahli.

Sfaxien are set to face title holders Ahli in the CAF Champions League final on October 29th and November 12th, and while Mahjoub admits Ahli is a team to reckon with.

"Ahli club is financially and historically superior to Sfaxien," Mahjoub told FilGoal.com’s correspondent in Tunis.

"The Egyptian national team itself is comprised mainly of Ahli players, and the team plays in a stadium that holds 100,000 fans," he added.

However, the veteran coach insisted his team was no pushover and that he knows how to beat the Egyptian giants.

"Sfaxien is also a strong club that has great weight both on the regional and continental levels," said Mahjoub.

"I have to admit I’m not impressed or even intimidated by Ahli," he stated.

The former Arab champions handed Ahli their first continental defeat in two years when they beat them 1-0 in Sfax in the opening game of their quarter-finals Group A matches.

But the Cairo giants returned the favor by winning the second match at home 2-1.

"I know their weaknesses very well and I’m going to work on them," added Mahjoub.

Sfaxien qualified to the Champions League final for the first time after beating South African side Orlando Pirates 1-0 on aggregate.

"One good thing about Sfaxien is that the players are devoted and willing to make sacrifices to reach their goal.

"We proved we can do it two years ago in the Arab Champions League and this year we are hopeful we can do it on the continental level," added Mahjoub.

Ahli host the first leg in Cairo on October 29th.

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