A former Egypt star feels South Africa international Percy Tau deserves the plaudits following Al Ahly's latest continental win.
The Red Devils have reached the final of the CAF Champions League, where they will face Esperance Sportive de Tunis, after beating Tanzanian side TP Mazembe 3-0 on aggregate over two legs.
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Al Ahly manager Marcel Koller made the decision to start Tau in second leg of the semi-final – the Bafana Bafana star was used a substitute for the first leg – and the former Brighton & Hove Albion forward played the full 90 minutes.
The Red Castle now have the opportunity to win a record 12th CAFCL title, while Tau can win his third, having previously won it with Mamelodi Sundowns in 2016 before getting his hands on another with the Egyptian Premier League outfit last season.
The South African is the only footballer form Mzansi to have won the competition twice, and the final against ES Tunis presents a chance for him to extend that record.
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On Friday night, the 29-year-old was part of an attacking set-up that caused the Tanzanians considerable problems, and former star Ramadan El Sayed has since praised the frontline used.
"Koller's best decision is not to start with Anthony Modeste, and Wissam Abou Ali was able to score a wonderful goal similar to the world goals of Ronaldo and [Marco] van Basten, and the Palestinian striker is making a great effort and putting strong pressure on the defence, and Percy Tau and Abdel Qader, and Akram Tawfiq must be praised," El Sayed said, per Youm7.
He went on to commend Abou Ali for his performances during the tie, before raving about the side's defensive performance.
"One of his best matches, and he was the star of the match against Mazembe, and I am very happy with his level, especially in light of the anxiety that everyone felt after his return from injury, but he proved that he is a great player, and he is a great addition to the focal point in Al Ahly, and he scored a wonderful goal as a culmination of his efforts in the two matches," El Sayed continued.
"The defensive quartet played a good match and their level was great, and [Ramy] Rabia and [Mohamed] Abdel Moneim gave their best performance during the match, and Ali Maaloul proved that he is one of the best players and an important key to the team’s play, and he is an exceptional playmaker even though he is a left-back."
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