Al Merreikh down Al Hilal to clinch Sudanese derby bragging rights

Al Merrikh clinched the bragging rights from the Sudanese derby as they downed rivals Al Hilal 2-1 at the Al Salam Stadium in Cairo in their TotalEnergies CAF Champions League Group A match on Friday.

The victory in Cairo takes Merrikh temporarily on top of Group A with four points, same as Mamelodi Sundowns who play defending champions Al Ahly on Saturday.

Al Merrikh started the game with a bang, opening the scoring in the third minute of play.

Saadeldin Elsamani opened the scoring with a neat finish, planting the ball into the net after Hilal goalkeeper Abou Eshrein came off his line.

Merrikh were dominant and the early goal gave them more courage and confidence to command the game.

However, against the run of play, their bitter rivals equalized through skipper Mohamed Abdel Raman at the half hour mark. The captain picked up a pass from Eid Mugadam before finishing off a counter attack.

But Merrikh could not let their slender lead slip off and just before the break, Saadeldin completed his brace scoring the second for Merrikh, finishing off a pass from Nigerian import Tony Edjomariegwe.

In the second half, Hilal tried to bring in some pressure for the equalizer, but Merrikh guarded their rear with caution to see off the victory and bag the maximum points.

This was Merrikh’s second match of the group while Hilal have played three. They have only accumulated one point, from their drub draw in Omdurman against holders Ahly and sit bottom of the group.