El Badry: Ahly always play with victory in mind

After being held to a home draw in their Group A opener, Egyptian giants Al Ahly are hoping to have a positive result when they tackle their Ugandan hosts Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) Tuesday in Kampala.

Both sides have had a slow start to the group stage, Ahly only managed a barren draw in Alexandria with Tunisian guests Esperance, while KCCA returned from Botswana pointless after losing to fellow group stage debutants Township Rollers 1-0.

Hoping to emulate their last season's performance when they reached the final, Ahly know they have to return with something from the Ugandan capital, where they face KCCA for the first time in a CAF competition. The Red Devils’ last visit to Kampala dates back to 2005 when they played against KCCA's rivals SC Villa in the Champions League first round.

“We know KCCA is a good team,” Ahly coach Hossam El Badry said as his team arrived in Kampala.

“We always play with one thing in mind, to win.”

Ahly are missing some of their key players through injuries, notably foreign legion Ali Maaloul (Tunisia), Junior Ajayi (Nigeria) and top scorer Walid Azaro (Morocco).

“Of course, missing three key players is a tough case to deal with, but I know my players are up to the mission and whoever gets the chance to play will do his job,” he added.

After grabbing their 40th Egyptian Premier League title, Ahly fine-tuned their preparations for the game with a friendly against Dutch giants, Ajax in the United Arab Emirates. The Red Devils had a morale boosting 1-0 win in the game which also served as a testimonial for veteran captain Hossam Ghaly who recently called time on your career.

El Badry could bank on young striker Salah Mohsen, who scored the winner against Ajax last Friday. Joining Ahly from ENPPI last January in a record deal in Egyptian transfer business, (almost 2 million euros), Mohsen is considered one of the promising young talents in Egyptian football.

Esperance locks horns with surprise packets Township Rollers same day in Tunis. Rollers top Group A with three points, Ahly and Esperance follow in that order with a point each while KCCA trails the pack pointless.

Fixtures

Group A

15.5.2018      13H00 Kampala        KCCA (Uganda) vs Al Ahly (Egypt)

15.5.2018      19H00 Tunis             Esperance (Tunisia) vs Township Rollers (Botswana)

Group B

15.5.2018      19H00 El Jadida        Difaa El Jadidi (Morocco) vs TP Mazembe (DR Congo)

15.5.2018      19H00 Setif              ES Setif (Algeria) vs MC Alger (Algeria)

Group C

15.5.2018      19H00 Casablanca    Wydad (Morocco) vs AS Togo (Togo)

22.5.2018      16H00 Conakry         Horoya (Guinea) vs Sundowns (South Africa)

Group D

15.5.2018      13H00 Manzini          Swallows (Swaziland) vs Primeiro de Agosto (Angola)

16.5.2018      19H00 Sousse                     Etoile du Sahel (Tunisia) vs Zesco (Zambia)