Pirates defeat Al Ahly in Cairo to make Caf intentions clear

Matshelane Mamabolo

Al AHLY (0) 1

EL SHAWAT ‘69

ORLANDO PIRATES (0) 2

Mofokeng ‘54, Gilberto ‘87

VICTORIOUS in Cairo, unbeaten throughout the round robin and top of the table in Group B. Orlando Pirates mean business in the year’s CAF Champions League.

Back at continental football’s premier club knockout competition after a long time, the Buccaneers have looked like they’ve never been away.

Saturday they sealed off a stellar campaign at a sparsely populated Cairo International Stadium with a win over the defending champions and record winners who are chasing an unprecedented third successive title.

The discerning follower of African football will know that a Pirates victory away to the Red Eagles is nothing new, Pirates having beaten Ahly twice before in the Champions League.

But with the Egyptians having held them goalless at Orlando Stadium in the first round, few would have bet on a Pirates victory.

Jose Riveiro’s boys are a special breed, the young team so adept at producing results not many would bet on. They began this campaign with a surprise victory away to CR Belouizdad and only dropped points twice in the campaign with the goalless draws against Ahly and Stade Abidjan.

Saturday, they only needed a draw to finish top of the group.

But they went for broke and their efforts paid off with Relebohile Mofokeng and Gilberto finding the opposition net to ensure maximum points. They are now into the quarter-finals and that dream of a second star remains alive, the current young lot looking to emulate the Class of 1995 that was the first side from southern Africa to be crowned African champions. And there was something akin to that glorious day out in Abidjan in Saturday’s match in Cairo.

Mofokeng’s opening goal had a semblance to the one scored by Jerry Sikhosana to stun the packed crowd at the Houphouet Boigny Stadium and send all of the Ivory Coast into mourning, the country’s president having prematurely declared the Monday after that Saturday a holiday to celebrate what everyone had expected to be an Asec Mimosas victory.

But ‘Legs of Thunder’ scored after pouncing on a loose ball when two Asec defenders failed to clear a long punt from the back.

Early in the second half on Saturday, Mofokeng displayed maturity and composure beyond his 20 years to capitalise on some defensive error by two Ahly defenders to pick up the loose ball and coolly slotted in the first goal.

The lead lasted just a quarter hour though as the hosts restored parity on 69 minutes via Hussein El Shawat who lobbed the ball over Sipho Chaine.

But Pirates made it 2-1 three minutes before the end, substitute Gilberto heading in the loose ball- his first touch – after another late sub Tshegofatso Mabasa had seen his attempt bounce off the crossbar.

The Egyptians thought they’d equalised deep into time added on for stoppages when Ibrahim Elhanafy found the net but the assistant on the near side had long flagged for offside.

Ahly were left to complain to the officials at the final whistle as the Pirates players celebrated a win that should see them confident that they can emulate the Class of 95 and win Africa’s top club football accolade.

They will need to be reminded though, that back in 2013 their predecessors similarly beat Ahly in the group stages only to lose to them when it truly mattered – in the final.