Al Ahly fight back to beat Enppi after Mohamed Barakat’s side surrender two-goal lead

Enppi manager Mohamed Barakat said his players lacked the experience required to protect their advantage against Al Ahly, after his side were beaten 3-2 despite leading by two goals in the opening round of the Egyptian Premier League.

Barakat, who was sent off during the match, declined to discuss his dismissal after the game.

“I do not want to talk about my sending-off,” he told On Sport.

Enppi made an excellent start and appeared to have put their game plan into practice during the first half. Ali Ehab and Mohamed Essam scored to give them a 2-0 lead, but Al Ahly produced a strong second-half response to turn the match around.

Marwan Attia, Ahmed Sayed “Zizo” and Mohamed Magdy “Afsha” scored for Al Ahly as the reigning champions completed a dramatic comeback.

Barakat said his team had intended to remain faithful to their playing style throughout the match, but struggled to do so against a strong Al Ahly side.

“We started the match very well. The objective was to maintain our style, but we were unable to do that, especially against a strong opponent such as Al Ahly,” he said.

He added that Enppi had attempted to press high after the interval, only to lose their shape and retreat towards their own goal.

“We could not maintain our style throughout the match against Al Ahly. We tried to press high in the second half, but we dropped back,” Barakat said.

The Enppi manager also pointed to the relative inexperience of some of his players. Ali Ehab, who scored his team’s first goal, was born in 2006, while Mohamed Essam was making his first appearance in the Egyptian Premier League.

“The experience was not enough. Ali Ehab, who scored the first goal, was born in 2006, and Mohamed Essam is playing his first match in the Premier League. We are trying to make up for the difference in experience through training and analysis, and the future will be better,” Barakat said.

The victory ended a difficult run for Al Ahly against Enppi. It was their second successive win over the club, following five consecutive matches in all competitions without a victory against their opponents.

The match was also Hussein Ammouta’s first as Al Ahly manager. His side recovered after falling three goals behind and moved into the group of teams at the top of the table.

Al Ahly will look to build on the result when they face ZED on Friday in the second round of the league.

Enppi will play on the same day, when they host Wadi Degla.