Hussein Ammouta accepts responsibility as Al Ahly are held by Al Mokawloon Al Arab

Hussein Ammouta admitted he was the first person responsible after Al Ahly were held to a 1-1 draw by Al Mokawloon Al Arab in the Egyptian Premier League.

The result, played at the Green Mountain Stadium, was Al Ahly’s first dropped points of the season. It left them on 10 points after four matches, level with Zamalek, while Pyramids FC moved clear at the top of the table with 12 points.

Al Mokawloon Al Arab took their tally to four points and sit 13th.

Speaking at his post-match news conference, Al Ahly head coach Ammouta said the entire team had to accept responsibility for a performance in which he believed mistakes were made throughout the game.

“Unfortunately, nobody had a successful match. Everyone made mistakes and everyone must take responsibility, myself first,” he said.

Ammouta acknowledged that a draw was a normal outcome in football, but insisted his players had to accept the consequences of their display.

“It is normal for a team to draw, but we must take responsibility. It was a difficult match, with strong challenges against the opposition,” he added.

The Al Ahly manager said his team had anticipated the way the match would develop, but were unable to deal with the demands of the opening period.

“Unfortunately, we expected the scenario of the match and what would happen in it. The team’s start was not good, we made too many mistakes and we were not fully focused,” Ammouta said.

He felt the performance improved after the interval, with Al Ahly creating opportunities to secure victory, but the players failed to make the most of them.

“In the second half, we had several dangerous chances, but we did not deal with them properly to score the winning goal,” he said.

Ammouta also expressed his hope that Al Ahly would return to their best before their next fixture, which comes ahead of the international break.

“I hope we return to playing well in the next match before the international break,” he said.

The manager defended his team selection and said he had chosen players who were ready to contribute in both defensive and attacking areas. He also pointed to improvements in the side’s defensive organisation during the previous week.

“We used the players who were ready. It is positive that the defensive organisation improved over the past week, so we selected players who have good attacking and defensive abilities,” Ammouta explained.

He added that Al Ahly had enough quality within their squad to respond to the setback.

“We have a group of players capable of taking responsibility and leading the team forward,” he said.

Ammouta also discussed the limited involvement of Hussein El Shahat and Emam Ashour. He said there had not been enough time for either player to make a significant impact, particularly Ashour, who has only just returned from injury.

“The time was not enough for Hussein El Shahat and Emam Ashour, especially as Ashour has only just returned from injury. He has not yet reached his best physical condition and needs many minutes to regain the fitness that protects him from suffering another injury,” Ammouta said.