Egyptian Premier League: Montakhab El Suez Petrojet snatch late draw as Talaea El Gaish beat Al Mokawloon Al Arab

Montakhab El Suez Petrojet scored in the closing moments to secure a 1-1 draw against Assiut Petroleum in the opening round of the Egyptian Premier League.

Assiut Petroleum, who have returned to the Egyptian Premier League, appeared to be on course for victory after taking the lead through Ahmed Khaled in the 75th minute. However, Ahmed Bahbah equalised shortly before the final whistle, ensuring the points were shared.

The result gave Montakhab El Suez Petrojet a dramatic start to their league campaign, while Assiut Petroleum were denied what would have been a winning return to the competition.

Assiut Petroleum made the breakthrough when Mohamed Hasha played a through ball into the penalty area for Khaled. The forward showed composure to evade the goalkeeper before placing the ball into the Montakhab El Suez Petrojet net.

The goal put Assiut Petroleum in front with 15 minutes of normal time remaining and left Montakhab El Suez Petrojet needing a response. That response arrived only moments before the end of the match.

Bahbah met a cross from Mohamed Ali Okasha and directed a well-executed header into the net to level the score. His late effort completed a quick turnaround in the closing stages and produced an equal share of the points in the first round.

The match ended 1-1, with both sides taking a point from the opening fixture of the Egyptian Premier League.

Elsewhere, Tala’ea El Gaish began their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Al Mokawloon Al Arab.

Ahmed Alaa scored the only goal of the match in the 70th minute, converting a direct free-kick to put Tala’ea El Gaish ahead.

The decisive strike was enough to settle the contest and gave Tala’ea El Gaish an important victory at the start of the league season. Al Mokawloon Al Arab were unable to find an equaliser after falling behind.

Tala’ea El Gaish therefore secured the first win of their Egyptian Premier League campaign, while the opening-round fixtures also saw Montakhab El Suez Petrojet claim a point with a late equaliser against Assiut Petroleum.