JOHANNESBURG: An Emad Meteb stoppage-time goal gave Egyptians Al Ahly a dramatic CAF Confederation Cup final triumph over Ivorians Sewe Sport in Cairo Saturday.
The veteran striker struck in the sixth minute of injury time to earn Ahly a fortunate 1-0 second-leg victory against opponents who wasted several great scoring chances.
Ahly, who lost the first leg 2-1 in Abidjan last weekend, won on away goals to lift the second-tier African club competition trophy for the first time.
Meteb, the lone link to the great Ahly teams of the previous decade, rose unchallenged to nod a Walid Soliman cross past goalkeeper Sylvain Ghobouo.
The final whistle sounded almost immediately and Juan Carlos Garrido darted on to the Cairo Stadium pitch and celebrated becoming the first Spanish coach to win a CAF title.
It was a record-extending 19th African title for Ahly, whose collection includes eight CAF Champions League titles, six CAF Super Cup triumphs and four African Cup Winners Cup titles.
But a young, lively Sewe side appearing in a first African final should have had the final wrapped up long before Meteb became the hero of Egypt.
Captain Souleymane Dembele struck the post in the first half and Essis Aka and Roger Assale missed great second-half chances to grab a precious away goal.
Victory for the Cairo Red Devils lifted some of the gloom hanging over Egyptian football after the failure of the national team to qualify for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.
Egypt’s Al Ahly Confederation Cup champion
