The Moroccan coach led Al Ahly to victory in his first appearance in the Cairo derby
Hussein Ammouta, the Moroccan coach of Egypt's Al Ahly, has refused to rank the Cairo derby between Al Ahly and Zamalek above its Casablanca counterpart between Wydad and Raja.
Sunday evening at Cairo Stadium brought Ammouta his first Egyptian derby as a coach, and he marked it by leading Al Ahly to a 2-0 win over Zamalek in the sixth round of the Egyptian Premier League.
He knows the other fixture well. During two spells with Wydad, Ammouta beat Raja in the Casablanca derby twice.
April 2017 brought a 1-0 win. He repeated the trick in October 2022, this time 2-1.
Asked by Kooora at the post-match press conference which derby is the noisiest and strongest in Africa, Ammouta said: "The fans are the secret behind the success of derby matches everywhere."
He added: "The Al Ahly and Zamalek fans produced wonderful displays before and during today's match, yet I believe the Casablanca derby has a special flavour. The fans are always there in large numbers, reaching 60,000 or 65,000 spectators, and you can see the displays the fans put on."
Then came a smile from the Moroccan coach: "I can't prefer one derby over the other."
Which derby carried more pressure? "Pressure is always present in derby matches," Ammouta said. "Any coach or player who wants to avoid pressure and cannot handle it is unable to play for a top-level team or compete for titles."
The win lifts Al Ahly provisionally to the top of the Egyptian league on 16 points. Pyramids, second on 15, face Ceramica Cleopatra tomorrow, Monday, in the sixth round.