Riveiro: Al Ahly can upset Palmeiras despite injury blows
Al Ahly coach Jose Riveiro insists his injury-hit side can still unsettle Brazilian heavyweights Palmeiras when the two former continental champions collide in at New Jersey on Thursday.
The Cairo giants, who opened Group A with a goalless draw against Inter Miami, are without midfield orchestrator Emam Ashour (broken collar-bone) and wide men Taher Mohamed Taher and Ahmed Nabil Kouka.
Their absences leave Jose Riveiro’s squad stretched as they attempt to claim a first victory and move closer to the Club World Cup last 16.
“Palmeiras is one of the best teams in the Club World Cup, and they are stable with their current coach, who has played many matches with them over the past few seasons,” the Spaniard told reporters.
“Palmeiras is an experienced team that has played many tough matches, and they put in a strong performance against Porto in the first round. Al Ahly players have a strong desire to achieve a good result.”
Neither Palmeiras nor Al Ahly have found the net so far in the USA-based tournament.
Abel Ferreira’s men registered 17 shots yet could not beat Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa, while Al Ahly’s Mohamed El Shenawy pulled off two late saves — the second from Lionel Messi — to preserve a point against Inter Miami.
Ribeiro acknowledged his side must sharpen their attacking edge but praised new signing Ahmed “Zizo” Sayed, who made his debut off the bench in Miami.
“Zizo played his first match with Al-Ahly after joining the team recently and performed well,” he said.
Ferreira is expected to unleash 18-year-old winger Estevão — bound for Chelsea next year — after the teenager’s starring role in matchday one.
Asked how Al Ahly plan to limit the Brazilian prodigy, Jose Riveiro pointed to his players’ success in blunting Messi.
“Is there a specific plan to control Estevão? This was also present in the Inter Miami match. There are players with high individual skills, and we must deal with these matters carefully and try to keep them away from dangerous areas as much as possible.”
The coach added: “The idea of always relying on the defensive side, for me, is to force the opponent to perform at a lower level than usual, prevent them from creating real chances on the team’s goal, and impose strong control over the key players in the game, as happened with Lionel Messi, whom Al Ahly players made a great effort to prevent from passing and posing a threat to their goal.”
Jose Riveiro refused to single out any individual for criticism, confirming that discussion over Mahmoud “Trezeguet” Hassan’s missed spot-kick against Inter Miami is “completely resolved”.
“I won’t speak individually about any player on the team. We must focus only on the match against Palmeiras to achieve a positive result.”
With all four teams level on a point, Thursday’s encounter (19:00 Cairo) could prove pivotal, even if victory for either side would not mathematically secure qualification.
Palmeiras arrive with a clean bill of health and a coach promising “small surprises” in his lineup, while thousands of expatriate Egyptians are expected to turn the stadium red.
Riveiro, however, believes mindset will trump manpower: “Al Ahly’s history is built on meeting challenges head-on. My players know what is required.”