Al Ahly’s Maaloul, Fathy continue their recovery process

Dr. Ahmed Abu Abla,
head of Al Ahly’s medical staff, confirmed that Ali Maaloul will gradually
start participating in the team’s full training sessions on Wednesday.

Abu Abla added that
Maaloul, Al Ahly’s left back, underwent a scan, before traveling with the team
to South Africa, which showed that the player’s hamstring healed completely.

Moreover, Abua Abla
finds it difficult for Maaloul to participate in the team’s upcoming match
against Sundowns. However, he believes that the player will be ready to play in
the CAF Super Cup on May 28 in Qatar.

On a similar note, the
Tunisian defender, Maaloul, picked up a hamstring injury while playing for Al
Ahly in the previous FIFA Club World Cup.

Moreover, the Red
Eagles’ coaching staff included Maaloul as part of Al Ahly’s squad which
traveled to South Africa, after checking on the condition of the Tunisian
defender.

Additionally, Abu Abla,
revealed that Hamdy Fathy’s condition remains doubtful as to whether or not
he’ll be able to participate against Mamelodi Sundowns in the second leg of the
CAF Champions League quarter-finals.

However, Abu Abla
believes that Fathy is most likely to be ready for the CAF Super Cup, scheduled
on May 28 in Qatar.

Fathy suffered an
injury in his arm during Egypt’s game against Kenya in the African Qualifiers,
which caused him to undergo a surgery to fix the fracture.

Furthermore, the team’s
head coach Pitso Mosimane, said that the team achieved an important victory
over Sundowns in the first leg, but they did not secure their qualification to
the semi-finals yet.

“If anyone asked me before the first leg, would you take 1-0 or 2-0
victory against Sundowns, I will say yes, so I am happy with the result we got.
Winning the first leg is very important, but it does not secure our
qualification, as nothing is guaranteed in football.”

“I spoke with the players and congratulated
them after the game in Cairo. It is important to praise the good results, but I
also told them that this is like the half time and we are leading 2-0 and it
just gives us a slight advantage.”

“Facing Sundowns has always been difficult, and
we have to respect that. The first time Al Ahly have been here while I was
coaching Sundowns, Al Ahly lost.  Also, the last time Al Ahly have been
here, the team got a draw, so we never know what is going to happen, but I hope
that we can win here in the next game.”

“We do have many
injuries, as Ali Maaloul, Saad Samir, and Hamdy Fathy are still injured. We
missed them, but football is a professional sport and injuries will always
happen.”