Al Ahly Begin Quest For Eleventh African Crown

Egyptian giants Al Ahly will be hosted by US Monastir on Sunday, in the first leg of their CAF Champions League round of 32 clash.

The record ten-time African champions are eager to make their way to the group stage of the tournament for their 17th consecutive appearance in the continent’s foremost.

Marcel Koller’s coached outfit wants to erase from memory the debacle of the past season when they lost their crown to Wydad Casablanca of Morocco.

The Red Eagles finished the Egyptian Premier League on third place, the worst domestic league finish in 30 years.

The Cairo-giants management has since made several important signings during the summer transfer window in hopes of returning to winning titles.

Al Ahly will be welcoming back from injuries attacking midfielder Mohamed ‘Afsha’ Magdi and striker Mohamed Sherif.

Monastir, on the other hand, made the Champions League debut in 2022/23 edition having finished as runners-up to Esperance in Tunisia’s top-flight last season.

The Tunisian outfit booked their place in the second preliminary round after defeating Rwanda’s APR 3-0 to go through with a 3-1 aggregate win.

Last year, US Monastir  were eliminated in the African Confederation Cup playoffs after losing to Moroccan side Raja 6-5 on penalties.

It will be the first meeting between the two sides on the continental stage, with the kick off scheduled at Stade Mustaha Ben Jannet at 21h30 CAT on Sunday and the return leg set in Cairo on 15 October.