Egyptian Al-Ahly reinforced its dominance over the African Super Cup, winning its seventh title in history by defeating Moroccan RS Berkane 2-0 on Friday at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar. Mohamed Sherif (57) and Salah Mohsen (82) scored the goals of the match, which was attended by 2,900 spectators, mostly Al-Ahly fans, making up 30% of the stadium's capacity, after local organizers allowed fans to attend following eased COVID-19 restrictions.
The Cairo team reclaimed the Super Cup title after a seven-year absence since their last win in 2014, achieving an African double after winning the Champions League and seeking a historic fifth title if they succeeded in adding the local Super Cup to their League and Cup titles. In contrast, the Moroccan team, 2020 African Confederation Cup champions, could not maintain their good performance from the first half and succumbed to Al-Ahly's desires in the second half.
Al-Ahly nearly opened the scoring early but missed a chance when Mohamed Sherif received a cross from Mohamed Hany while unmarked (3). Mali’sAliou Dieng threatened goalkeeper Zouhair Laaroubi's goal with a shot over the bar, set up by Hussein El-Shahat (8). The Moroccan team gradually entered the match and imposed their dominance in the second half of the first half with a clear advantage and repeated approaches to goalkeeper Mohamed El-Shenawy.
Mohamed Farhan could have scored when he was set up by Mohsen Yajour in a one-on-one situation but inexplicably shot wide (27), while Zaid Kroush’s shot went over the bar (32). Al-Ahly attempted to reply when Hussein El-Shahat broke through but preferred to set up Sherif, who was in an offside position (34), as reported by AFP. RS Berkane almost ended the first half ahead when Bakri Hilali penetrated from the right and won a free kick near the box due to a foul by Yasser Ibrahim. Omar Namsawi executed the free kick to Mohamed Aziz, who missed from close range (45).
Al-Ahly's South African coach Pitso Mosimane made two substitutions at the start of the second half, introducing Tunisian Nabil Maaloul and Rami Rabia, which improved the defensive aspects of his team. Substitute Rabia led a counter-attack, passing the ball to El-Shahat, who relayed it to Mohamed Sherif in the area, allowing Sherif to turn and shoot the opening goal for Al-Ahly (57).
The Moroccan team pushed for an equalizer, with their Spanish coach Juan Pedro Benali utilizing Zakaria Hadrar and Burkinabe Elin Traore. However, Al-Ahly effectively managed this situation, relying on counter-attacks that led to a second goal when the new substitute Salah Mohsen faced the goalkeeper and placed the ball into the net (82), securing the title for his team.
