Ceramica Cleopatra tightened their grip on top spot in the Egyptian Premier League with a 3-1 home win over Al Ittihad Alexandria at the Suez Canal Authority Stadium, in a match heavily shaped by former Al Ahly stars.
The result further worsened Ittihad’s crisis, leaving them stuck in the relegation zone after another damaging defeat.
Amr El Solia opened the scoring for Ceramica after 16 minutes, capping a strong midfield move to put the leaders in front. New Ittihad signing Mohamed Magdy Afsha, on loan from Al Ahly, hit back on his debut, confidently converting a 31st-minute penalty to make it 1-1 and briefly raise hopes of a comeback for the visitors.
Ceramica, however, quickly reasserted control. Nigerian forward Sodiq Igoola restored the hosts’ advantage in the 38th minute with a superb strike that flew into the net, underscoring the champions’ attacking quality and composure in key moments.
The league leaders then killed the contest late on. Another Al Ahly loanee, Mohamed Abdallah, scored his first goal for Ceramica in the 80th minute to make it 3-1, sealing the points and adding an extra layer of pain for an Ittihad side increasingly short on answers.
Ceramica, coached by Ali Maher, move to 32 points at the summit after 15 rounds. Tamer Mostafa’s Ittihad remain on just 8 points in 20th place, having suffered their 10th defeat in 14 league matches and seeing their early-season problems deepen further.
