"Between the halves"...Is Al-Ahly targeting Zamalek's stars to weaken them psychologically?
Arabian Sea Newspaper - Exclusive
((Bahralarab)) Follow-ups: In a new episode of the "Between Halves" podcast on Sky News Arabia, a Zamalek fan and an Ahly fan faced off to discuss the most prominent points of contention between the two clubs' fans. The episode touched on the issue of the Club of the Century award, which the Confederation of African Football gave to Al Ahly Club, and the issue of Al Ahly's repeated recruitment of Zamalek stars. The Club of the Century Issue Mohamed Adham, a member of the Zamalek Club fan association in the Emirates, considered the Club of the Century issue a major issue to clarify the injustice that Zamalek is subjected to. Adham said: "Zamalek achieved 9 continental titles in the last millennium, while Al Ahly achieved only 7, yet the award was given to Al Ahly, and this is clear injustice." As for the journalist and Al Ahly fan, Mohamed Al-Sabbagh, he confirmed that the African regulations stipulate the principle of points in calculating the award, and do not only rely on titles. The Issue of Recruiting Zamalek Players Al-Sabbagh confirmed that Al Ahly's recruitment of Zamalek stars recently, such as Imam Ashour and Ahmed Sayed Zizo, is due to the search for benefit, as these, in his words, are the most prominent stars in Egypt. As for Adham, he confirmed that Al Ahly is targeting Zamalek stars because it only wants to weaken the opponent, and does not want it to return to competition ever. Adham refused to consider Ahmed Sayed Zizo an icon of Zamalek Club, despite the good seasons he presented with the team, due to his move to Al Ahly. The Withdrawal Issue Al Ahly decided to withdraw from the derby match against Zamalek last season, due to the failure to meet its desire to appoint foreign referees for the match. Adham confirmed that Al Ahly should have been punished with a deduction of 6 points and not only 3, as that was Zamalek's penalty for withdrawing years ago. But Al-Sabbagh confirmed that the new Egyptian football regulations stipulate the deduction of only 3 points from the withdrawing team, which all clubs have signed.
