The magic substitutes: who are the players that can change the course of the match in the second half?
The coaches of Al Ahly and Zamalek have announced their lineups for the upcoming Cairo derby, which will take place shortly at Cairo Stadium as part of the sixth round of the Egyptian Premier League.
Al Ahly will enter the match with the following lineup:
Meanwhile, Al Ahly's bench includes: Mohamed El Shenawy, Hadi Riyad, Taher Mohamed Taher, Ahmed Reda, Mounsef Bakar, Hussein El Shahat, Omar El Saai, Mohamed Magdy Afsha, Karim Fouad.
Zamalek's lineup is as follows
- Goalkeeper: Mahdy Suleiman.
- Defense: Mahmoud Bintayij, Mahmoud Hamdi "El Wench", Mohamed Ismail, Omar Gaber.
- Midfield: Mohamed Shahat, Ahmed Rabi, Ahmed Fattouh, Abdullah El Sayed.
- Attack: Chico Banza, Ahmed Sherif.
On the bench, Zamalek has: Mohamed Awad, Mostafa El Zanari, Mahmoud Jahad, Ahmed Abdel Rahim "Esho", Adam Kaid, Mohamed Hamad, Nasser Mansi, Hossam Ashraf, Adi Al Dabbagh.
Despite the strength of both teams in attack, there are several game-changing players on the benches who could alter the course of the match in the second half. Looking at Al Ahly's bench, Hussein El Shahat stands out as one of the key players in big matches, having scored five goals against Zamalek.
Moreover, Algerian Mounsef Bakar is considered one of the key players relied upon by Moroccan coach Hussein Amouta in his tactics, while Taher Mohamed Taher has delivered strong performances in several league matches. Finally, Mohamed Magdy Afsha is seen as a lucky charm for Al Ahly, consistently shining in major games.
On the other side, there are also crucial players, notably Palestinian Adi Al Dabbagh, who was the team's top scorer last season. Despite missing key matches due to injury, he is expected to be relied upon by team coach Moataz Gamal for part of the match.
Hossam Ashraf, who leads the scoring chart this season, is also one of the important options the coach will turn to during the match, in addition to Ahmed Abdel Rahim Esho and Nasser Mansi.
