Ghazl El Mehalla Hold Off Al Ittihad After First-Half Double

Match overview

Ghazl El Mehalla claimed a 2-1 home victory over Al Ittihad at El Mahalla Stadium in Round 7 of the Egyptian Premier League. The hosts built their advantage before the interval through Abdelfattah Sheta and Amr Gomaa, then withstood a second-half response after Hossam Hassan reduced the deficit in the 47th minute.

The result was decided by the contrast between Ghazl El Mehalla’s productive first-half spell and Al Ittihad’s inability to add a second goal after their quick restart. Al Ittihad had more possession, 54% to 46%, and completed more passes, 335 to 277, but Ghazl El Mehalla carried a sharper threat across the match statistics.

First-half advantage

The first notable disciplinary moment came in the second minute, when Al Ittihad’s Momen Awad was booked for a foul. Ghazl El Mehalla then made the scoreboard reflect their early work in the 31st minute: Sheta scored with a right-footed shot, with Abdel Rahman Osama providing the assist.

The home side struck again in first-half stoppage time. Gomaa finished with his right foot in the 45th minute plus two, sending Ghazl El Mehalla into the break with a two-goal lead.

Those goals came in a game in which the hosts registered 16 total shots to Al Ittihad’s nine. Both sides recorded three efforts on target, underlining the importance of Ghazl El Mehalla converting two of theirs. They also created two big chances, compared with one for the visitors, though they missed one of those two opportunities.

Al Ittihad’s immediate reply

Al Ittihad made two changes at the start of the second half, introducing Mahmoud Emad and Pascal Phiri in the 46th minute. A minute later, Hossam Hassan scored with a right-footed shot to make it 2-1 and give the visitors a direct route back into the contest.

That was Al Ittihad’s only goal of the second half. Their overall territorial numbers remained competitive: they produced 99 attacks to Ghazl El Mehalla’s 96, while dangerous attacks were almost level at 52 to 53. They also delivered six accurate crosses, one more than the hosts’ five.

Yet Ghazl El Mehalla retained an edge in several decisive areas. They won 51 duels to 47, completed 17 successful tackles to Al Ittihad’s 15, and made 13 interceptions compared with six. The hosts also supplied 11 key passes, nearly twice Al Ittihad’s six, and completed eight successful dribbles from 18 attempts; Al Ittihad completed three from 15.

Managing the closing stages

Ghazl El Mehalla used all five substitutions, with Abdo Yehia introduced in the 58th minute, Rached Arfaoui and Abdelrahman Emad entering in the 68th, and Moaz Abdel Salam coming on in the 83rd. Al Ittihad made four changes in total, including the 74th-minute introductions of John Ebuka and Youssry Wahid.

The home side were booked twice, Ahmed Yasser in the 63rd minute and goalscorer Sheta in the 77th; Al Ittihad finished with one yellow card. Ghazl El Mehalla had four corners to Al Ittihad’s three and blocked five shots, while the visitors blocked one.

Standout performer

Abdel Rahman Osama was named Player of the Match with a rating of 7.55. His assist for Sheta’s opener was the game’s first recorded assist and set the tone for Ghazl El Mehalla’s decisive first-half advantage. Sheta received a 7.51 rating after scoring the opening goal, while Mory Touré posted 7.44. For Al Ittihad, Hossam Hassan was their highest-rated player at 7.24 after scoring the second-half goal.

Ghazl El Mehalla leave the match with a narrow but deservedly protected 2-1 result: less of the ball, but more shots, more key passes, more successful dribbles and the two first-half finishes that ultimately separated the teams.