Egypt’s Al Ahly held hosts Etoile Sahel to a goalless draw in the first leg of the MTN CAF Champions League final in the Tunisian city of Sousse on Saturday evening.
Etoile hit the woodwork through Mohammad Ali Nafkha on the half hour mark and wasted several good scoring chances, while Al Ahly had two strong penalty appeals rejected.

Medhi Meriah was sent off for hauling down Mohamed Barakat with less than 15 minutes to play, reducing the Tunisians to 10 men.
Al Ahly are seeking an unprecedented third consecutive Champions League title and a record sixth in their history.

Follow up:

Ahli were outplayed by a determined Etoile side, who made a couple of threats on Egyptian keeper Essam Al-Hadari in the first-half.


On the other hand, the visitors failed to create clear-cut chances, sitting back as to prevent the Tunisians from taking the advantage.


Barakat was denied a penalty after 18 minutes when he was tugged inside the area but Cameroonian referee Evehe Devine waved the play on.


Cape Verde striker Gilson Silva bothered Ahli defense with his penetration, making the better of defender Wael Gomaa more than once.

Etoile almost broke the deadlock in the 32ndminute when midfielder Mohamed Nafkha was released by a through pass before striking the post with a fierce low drive.
Two minutes before the break, a cross by Silva from the left flank hit the outside of the crossbar.


Gilson wasted another glorious opportunity nine minutes after re-start when he latched on to a deft pass and went one-on-one with Al-Hadari but he blasted poorly wide.



Ahli replied three minutes later when the mercurial Barakat controlled Flavio’s flick-on and raced goalwards but his powerful shot hit the side netting.


Etoile hopes suffered a huge blow in the 77th minute when Meriah received his marching orders.


The impressive Barakat outpaced two defenders and went clear on goal, only to be halted by Meriah’s tackle.


The Red Devils’ defensive strategy was effective as Etoile failed in their attempts to score a precious goal.







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