African Champions League Final: Tense 1st Leg Ends 0-0

I had the pleasure of watching ESS take on the holders of the title, Al Ahly of Egypt, today. The 1st leg of the all Arab final was being played in the beautiful resort town of Sousse where 25,000 supporters (1,000 of which were traveling Ahly supporters) filled the stadium and created an electric atmosphere to set the stage for this great competition. The Etoile fans truly went all out: Flares, banners, call and response chants, and enough jumping up and down to make the ground tremble. Though the battle tested Egyptians were probably far from intimidated, the young Etoile team must’ve enjoyed what they saw and heard. Even former ESS star Yassine Chikhaoui made it out to lend his support. By the way, although the picture might confuse some, it is a reference to the Club World Championships that take place in Japan every year. The winner of this competition will qualify and get a chance to play against the best teams from each continent (Ahly took the bronze in the last edition).

The game was billed as a battle between the steady hand (or feet, rather) of experience versus the quickness and fearlessness of youth. Given that Etoile fielded a team with an average age of 23 and that Ahly’s was 28 and a half, I’ll let you guess which was which. As the game began, it quickly became clear that the pregame analysts had hit the nail on the head. Spurred on by the capacity crowd, Etoile applied a high press and attacked in waves. Unfortunately, the Egyptians were bending but not breaking.

The Tunisian domestic champions controlled the ball throughout while Ahly was content to sit back and create opportunities on the counter (a far cry from the possession football they are used to playing). Gilson Silva looked particularly dangerous as did the 20 year old Chermiti. Sadly, it was all build up and no finish. The closest thing to a goal came when Nafkha hit the right post from point blank range. Etoile looked like they were trying to do their best Arsenal impression (I’m referring to last year’s entertaining yet wasteful version). The half came to an end and ESS had nothing to show for their valiant efforts to take down the Egyptian giants.

The second half was much of the same but Ahly came very close to scoring with the last man Meriah having to take down Barakat who had received a clever pass which put him in a 1 on 1 situation with the goalie. Meriah got a red and Etoile had to play with ten men for the last ten minutes. Thankfully the tackle occurred outside the box and Aboutrika couldn’t create anything off the free kick (he had already missed a few similar ones). It must be said that the ejection should not mislead anyone into believing that this was a dirty match. It was physical but all the tackles were professional and the game was played with an almost surprising level of fair play with opposing players helping each other up and some even exchanging smiles and pleasantries.

ESS paid no mind to being a man down as they still looked the most like scoring, creating numerous chances off set pieces and crosses from the wings. Despite having played stylish football and having looked dominant for the majority of the match, it just wasn’t their night. One could look at this game and say they have condemned themselves to a bleak fate in Cairo. It is possible but I’m not of this opinion. Considering the fact that ESS did not concede an away goal and that there is still all to play for in the second leg, one has to be philosophical about this result. The teams meet again on the 9th of November. I’ll probably be at work while they play but if you want some tips on how to catch it via an online stream, drop a comment and I’ll get back to you.

Update

Even the opposing coach, Manuel Jose, made remarks after the game about how impressive the fans were. Not surprising to me, the country as a whole has a reputation of very innovative and vocal supporters (if you want proof watch the videos below or check this out). Let’s hope ESS can manage a result without them in Cairo.

Match Highlights: