By Kazeem Ajibola Shoyebo
Espérance Sportive de Tunis booked their place in the CAF Champions League semi‑finals after a dramatic 3–2 victory over Al Ahly in the second leg of their quarter‑final tie at the Cairo International Stadium on Saturday.
The Tunisian side overturned a first‑leg deficit and progressed 4–2 on aggregate, ending Al Ahly’s hopes of reaching the last four of Africa’s premier club competition.
The hosts went ahead early through Mahmoud Trezeguet, whose goal in the 10th minute raised Al Ahly’s hopes of overturning the first‑leg result. ([Ahram Online][1])
However, Espérance responded in the second half with flair. Florian Danho levelled from long range in the 68th minute, before Mohamed Tougai broke the deadlock from the penalty spot ten minutes later. ([Ahram Online][1])
Al Ahly pushed to stay in the tie, with Marwan Othman pulling one back in the 84th minute to reignite hope among the home fans.
But Espérance sealed the win in stoppage time through defender Hamza Jelassi, whose late header confirmed a memorable night for the visitors and sparked jubilant celebrations among the Tunisian contingent in Cairo.
The result marks a rare victory for Espérance in Egypt in Champions League history and ends Al Ahly’s impressive run in the competition, their first failure to reach the semi‑finals since 2019.
Espérance now prepare for a semi‑final clash against another top African club, keeping alive their ambitions of lifting the CAF Champions League trophy.
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