Al Ahly and Zamalek unhappy with scheduling Egyptian Super Cup five days after Afcon final

Al Ahly and Zamalek players who represented Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon only arrived in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday to join up with their respective club sides for Friday’s game at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium.

ABU DHABI // Hossam El Badry, the Al Ahly manager, has criticised the organisers of the Egypt Super Cup for scheduling the match one week after the final of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Players from both Ahly and Zamalek were part of the Egypt squad that lost to Cameroon 2-1 in the final at the Stade d’Angondje in Libreville, Gabon, on Sunday. Ahly had five players in the national team while Zamalek had three.

Those players only arrived in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday to join up with their respective club sides for Friday’s game between Ahly, the Egyptian league champions, and the domestic cup winners Zamalek at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium.

“The national team players have confirmed their readiness to take part in the Super Cup in spite of the exhaustion playing in the Afcon,” El Badry said at a packed pre-match news conference at Al Jazira’s home on Thursday.

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“The timing of this Super Cup is bad for the both teams given that the number of players in the national team.

“Playing the Egypt Super Cup in the UAE is a good decision; we can see good organisation, but the timing is poor for a high-profile match of this level.”

More than 30,000 fans are expected to fill the stadium for the “Egyptian clasico” between the two Cairo-based heavyweights.

Friday’s match will be the second time the teams have contested the Egyptian Super Cup in the UAE. The first time was in October 2015, at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain, which Ahly won 3-2.

“This is a very big match for us and the morale in the team is high,” El Badry said.

“The team is very eager to play and give their best and win. We had a few players who were down with injuries.

“Our international players are motivated but they are a bit sad after they lost the Afcon final, but they know how to deal with such situation and now they are totally focused on this match.

“I was not there for the Super Cup match in Al Ain but now I am here and I really like playing the Super Cup in UAE.”

Ahly arrive having beaten their arch rivals 2-0 in the Egyptian Premier League when the teams last met on December 29.

“This game is different from the league,” El Badry said.

“It’s just one match for the cup. So, the preparation, the tactical and psychological approach is all different.

“The position of the both the teams in the domestic league will have no role to play in the result of tomorrow’s game.

“The chances are 50-50 for both the teams. There are just 90 minutes and we will give our best.”

Ahly head the Egyptian Premier League on 45 points. Zamalek are third on 34 points but have two games in hand.

Mohammed Helmy, the Zamalek manager, echoed his counterpart’s sentiments on the scheduling of the match.

“We had just five days to prepare for this match as our players were with the national team but we’ll give our best to win the cup,” he said.

“This is a very special match. Everybody knows Zamalek players.

“It’s an open book: our players want to win for our fans.”

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