Al Ahly Appoint Hussein Ammouta as Manager

Al Ahly named Moroccan coach Hussein Ammouta as first-team manager after ending Jess Thorup’s tenure earlier this month.

Al Ahly announced the appointment of Moroccan coach Hussein Ammouta as manager of the first football team, replacing Danish coach Jess Thorup.

The club’s board approved Ammouta’s appointment during a meeting chaired by president Mahmoud El-Khatib. His contract is set to run for two seasons. blablasex.es

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Ammouta’s last job was with Emirati club Al Jazira. He previously coached Jordan, Morocco’s local national team and Wydad Casablanca.

He is expected to arrive in Cairo soon to begin preparations for next season. Al Ahly will hold a press conference to introduce him.

Jess Thorup left Al Ahly by mutual consent earlier this month after a below-par season. He had taken charge in October on a two-and-a-half-year deal.

The Danish coach won the Egyptian Super Cup, but Al Ahly finished third in the league, missed out on next season’s CAF Champions League, and exited the current edition at the quarter-final stage.

Ammouta arrives with experience in African and Asian football. He led Wydad Casablanca to the 2017 CAF Champions League title, won the African Nations Championship with Morocco’s local national team, and guided Jordan to the 2023 Asian Cup final.

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Lille, France: Former Eintracht Frankfurt boss Dino Toppmoeller has been appointed Lens coach after Pierre Sage left for Crystal Palace, the French Ligue 1 club said on Tuesday.

The 45-year-old German was sacked by Eintracht in January after four years at the helm, during which he guided them to the Champions League.

Toppmoeller, who was assistant to Julian Nagelsmann at RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich, has signed a deal until 2028 to replace Sage, who joined Palace on Monday.

"Dino has exactly the profile we were looking for," Lens sporting director Jean-Louis Leca said in a statement.

"His experiences in Germany, alongside international players and top-level coaching staff allowed him to enrich his career and refine his tactical approach."

Lens will play in the Champions League next season after finishing second to Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 last term.

Doha, Qatar: Qatar are gearing up for their crucial Group B clash against co-hosts Canada with renewed belief after a gallant performance against Switzerland that earned them their first-ever World Cup point.

Al Annabi head into the contest brimming with confidence after their 1-1 draw in their opening match against group favourites Switzerland following a late equaliser.

They now face Canada in Vancouver on Friday (1am Qatar time).

As the two-time Asian champions prepare for the match, head coach Julen Lopetegui and his staff are working on the shortcomings exposed in the opening game with an aim of delivering a better performance.

Qatar’s determination was rewarded in remarkable fashion against Switzerland on Saturday. Deep into stoppage time, Homam Al Amin delivered a dangerous cross into the area where Boualem Khoukhi challenged Switzerland’s Miro Muheim in the air. Khoukhi’s header took a telling touch off Muheim before wrong-footing the goalkeeper and finding the back of the net, cancelling out Breel Embolo’s first-half penalty.

The equaliser sparked emotional celebrations among the Qatar players, who had spent long periods of the match resisting relentless Swiss attacks through disciplined and committed defending.

Khoukhi said the late goal reflected the team’s belief and refusal to surrender.

“We believed in ourselves until the last moment. We played a great match, and getting a point is much better than losing, especially since the opponent is a team of Switzerland’s calibre,” the seasoned defender told media on the sidelines of team’s training session.

“I am certainly very happy after leaving the match with a point, and we want to continue in the same way in the upcoming matches.

“We took a lot of risks in the last minutes, and we had to do that because we were behind in the score.

“A draw is better than a loss, and we have two very difficult matches ahead of us against Canada and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and InshaAllah, we will be better than in the first match.”

Forward Edmilson Junior echoed the same sense of belief inside the camp, saying the result has given Qatar the confidence needed to push for an historic breakthrough.

“The point we earned against Switzerland feels like a victory, especially since the equaliser came in a fantastic way in the final moments against a strong team with a great reputation in Europe,” he said.

“I think Switzerland is the best team in our group, so coming away with a point and avoiding defeat will give us a lot of confidence before our next match in the World Cup.

He added that the squad was encouraged by the support from fans and determined to build on the draw in the upcoming matches.

“We are happy with the fans who came to support us. There were a large number of them, and this is important for us. The fans’ support will benefit us greatly in the upcoming matches.

“We are here to give our all. We will play each match without looking at the others, and we will fight to avoid defeat. Participating in the World Cup is a dream, and we will do our best despite the difficult weather conditions and high temperatures.”

Canada, however, present another stern examination. The co-hosts also celebrated a historic milestone after coming from behind to draw 1-1 with Bosnia and Herzegovina in Toronto, earning their first-ever point at a World Cup after losing all six matches in their previous appearances in 1986 and 2022.

Led by American coach Jesse Marsch, Canada boast considerable quality through Bayern Munich defender Alphonso Davies and Juventus forward Jonathan David.

Lopetegui expects an even tougher task against the home side.

“The next match will be the most difficult because it is against Canada, one of the host countries, and they will be playing in front of their fans,” the Spaniard said.

All four teams in Group B have one point apiece, with Switzerland set to face Bosnia and Herzegovina in Los Angeles on Thursday.

Seattle: Belgium and Egypt drew 1-1 in their World Cup opener on Monday after a second-half Belgian equalizer spoiled Mohamed Salah's 34th birthday.

Emam Ashour opened the scoring early in the first half in Seattle, before Romelu Lukaku came off the bench after the hour to force Egypt's Mohamed Hany into an own goal.

With the draw, seven-time Africa Cup of Nations champions Egypt's wait for a first victory at a World Cup goes on.

This is their fourth participation in the global showpiece and with Group G fixtures to come against Iran and New Zealand, they will hope to break that hoodoo in North America.

For Belgium, this tournament is likely the last chance for the remnants of their golden generation to better their third-placed finish in Russia eight years ago and finally win silverware.

Veterans Kevin De Bruyne, Thibaut Courtois and Lukaku are the main protagonists of that group still involved in Rudi Garcia's squad.

With all eyes in the Pacific Northwest on Salah and De Bruyne, it was the ex-Manchester City playmaker that created the first moment of note in the match when he dragged a sharp effort narrowly wide in the seventh minute.

However, it was Ashour who upstaged the pair just before the hydration break when he received the ball in a similar position to De Bruyne but his sweetly-struck effort left Courtois no chance as it whistled into the bottom-right corner.

It was just the second time in their history that Egypt had taken the lead in a World Cup match -- after Salah opened the scoring in a 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in 2018.

De Bruyne came within inches of levelling early in the second period when he whipped a close-range free-kick over the Egyptian wall, only to see it rocket off the outside of the post.

Salah responded at the other end as he ghosted into the box but had his downward header punched away by Courtois with Ashour getting his follow-up effort all wrong.

The match became stretched as both sides came close on a couple of occasions, including a screaming left-footed volley by Belgian captain Youri Tielemans.

With 65 minutes gone, Rudi Garcia decided to send on Lukaku.

The change immediately paid dividends as Belgium's all-time top goalscorer showed his predatory instincts to dash in on a Thomas Meunier cross, with his presence enough to destabilize Hany who put through his own net.

Salah departed the field with 15 minutes remaining as Egypt sought to shut up shop and ultimately held out for a point.