Al Ahly have defeated Raja Casablanca 2-1 in the first leg of the CAF Champions League quarter-finals this season on Saturday.
The Red Devils had a dream start to the encounter as they were awarded a controversial penalty early in the game for an alleged handball inside the box.
Amr El-Sulya stepped up to take the spot-kick and converted successfully to give the home side the lead in the 13th minute of the game.
Mohamed Sherif had a glorious chance to score a second for Al Ahly but his free header forced a routine save from Raja goalkeeper Anas Zniti following Percy Tau’s sublime cross after 18 minutes.
Five minutes later, Tau provided another sublime pass to Hussein El-Shahat who slotted home Al Ahly’s second of the evening.
READ: I know Salah will have a strong finish to the season, says Klopp
The champions continued to pile more pressure on Raja Casablanca and looked to extend their lead before half-time but lacked the precision and cutting edge when finishing their chances.
Raja managed to pull one back against the run of play just a minute before the break when Abdelilah Madkour’s cutback met a thumping finish from Mohamed Zrida to get his side back in the game.
Going into the break with seven attempts on goal in the first half, Al Ahly will feel they should have been more efficient in front of goal and extended their lead further by more than just one goal.
However, Al Ahly picked up where they left in the first half and their dominance paid dividends as the game took a major turn when Raja went a man down around the hour mark.
Tau’s delicate back-heel pass sent Mohamed Sherif through on goal but his chipped effort was saved by Zniti before Hussein El-Shahat’s rebound was blocked off the line by Marouane Hadhoudi’s arm.
The incident gave the referee no choice but to award another penalty for Al Ahly and a straight red card for Hadhoudi, who denied a clear goalscoring opportunity.
Expert penalty taker El-Sulya lined up for his second spot-kick of the night, but this time Zniti stood tall and parried the midfielder’s effort to maintain Raja’s one-goal deficit.
Al Ahly failed to capitalise on Raja’s woes and had a wasteful evening with Tau missing a wonderful chance towards the end of the game.
The second leg between both sides is set to take place a week from now at the Mohamed V Stadium on Saturday, April 23rd as kick-off takes place at 12:00 CLT.
