Saturday, 13 March 2021, 3 pm local time (1 pm UTC), Eastern Company Stadium, Giza (Cairo), Egypt, the 17th round of the Egyptian Second Division, Group A.
Eastern Company are the main favorites for promotion to the Egyptian Premier League and their win today was essential to maintain and even increase their gap over the second classified, El Minya. The match between the Eastern Company and Fayoum was very tense from the very beginning, but tensions rose to unexpected levels in the second half and after the match ended.
In the first half, both teams had some chances, but it was 0-0 at half time and nobody expected what happened next. Two players, one from each team, unintentionally clashed their heads in search for the ball and remained on the ground. Most players stopped. Fayoum players had the ball and wanted to send it out to allow the medical staff to enter the ground, but instead the ball got on the opposite side of the field to Eastern Company's Bakr Fathi, who was probably unaware of what happened, and ran almost unopposed on the left flank, eventually scoring: 1-0 (47').
Fayoum players protested violently, blaming especially Bakr Fathi for his lack of fair play. The referee tried to calm things down, though he was the one who should have stopped the game and is partly liable for what happened. The game was eventually resumed after a large break, but tensions remained high. A penalty awarded for Fayoum was missed by Hussein Khaled. This frustrated the visitors even more. Ahmed Bakri (Fayoum manager) and Alaa Ibrahim (Eastern Company manager) exchanged some heavy words and the situation degenerated once again; both managers were sent off.
Fayoum had several good chances to equalize, but the Eastern Company succeeded in maintaining their minimal advantage until the end. Everything should have stopped when the match ended, but it just didn't. Verbal and even physical clashes between players and staff from both sides continued long after the final whistle.
Clashes continued after the final whistle. Source: Nile Sports
Security forces had to intervene to settle things down. This is even more shameful for both teams because the match was broadcasted by Nile Sports TV, and they were well aware that everything that happened was available to a large audience. Representatives from both teams appeared in televised interventions throughout the evening, trying to explain and to justify their acts.
Fayoum SC president, Ali Masoud, in an official statement, described the events as "unacceptable" but denied responsibility, since Fayoum football team is now managed by a company, which is the main sponsor since the beginning of the season, and "so far" they have had the support of the club president and of the executive board. It is unclear whether they would still have that support, especially because the results were not so good lately, and this scandal clearly affects the club image. Ali Masoud ensured that the club wishes to have good and equal relations to all other clubs, with no exceptions, and asked Fayoum fans to continue to support their team.
Eastern Company benefited from a surprising 1-1 draw by El Minya against the last classified, Asyut Cement, and they are now 7 points clear at the top of the group.
In the next round, Fayoum will face Merkaz Shaban Samasta at home. A win is a must.
Full results, table and fixtures:
Round 17 (13 March 2021)
M.S. Samasta – Beni Suef 0-1
El Minya – Asyut Cement 1-1
Telephonat – Dayrout 1-1
Aluminium – Media 3-1
Eastern Company – Fayoum 1-0
Sohag – KIMA Aswan 2-0
Shaban Qena – Tahta 2-1
Asyut Petroleum – Qena 0-0
Table
|
1 |
Eastern Company |
17 |
12 |
3 |
2 |
25-13 |
39 |
Promotion to the Premier League |
|
2 |
El Minya |
17 |
9 |
5 |
3 |
18-10 |
32 |
|
|
3 |
Aluminium |
17 |
8 |
5 |
4 |
22-14 |
29 |
|
|
4 |
Beni Suef |
17 |
8 |
5 |
4 |
18-14 |
29 |
|
|
5 |
Dayrout |
17 |
7 |
7 |
3 |
31-20 |
28 |
|
|
6 |
Media |
17 |
6 |
8 |
3 |
22-14 |
26 |
|
|
7 |
Sohag |
17 |
6 |
6 |
5 |
12-10 |
24 |
|
|
8 |
Fayoum |
17 |
5 |
6 |
6 |
12-13 |
21 |
|
|
9 |
Qena |
17 |
5 |
6 |
6 |
13-18 |
21 |
|
|
10 |
Shaban Qena |
17 |
4 |
8 |
5 |
10-13 |
20 |
|
|
11 |
Asyut Petroleum |
17 |
3 |
9 |
5 |
10-12 |
18 |
|
|
12 |
Telephonat |
17 |
3 |
8 |
6 |
9-11 |
17 |
|
|
13 |
M.S. Samasta |
17 |
3 |
6 |
8 |
11-16 |
15 |
Relegation to the Third Division |
|
14 |
KIMA Aswan |
17 |
2 |
8 |
7 |
11-20 |
14 |
Relegation to the Third Division |
|
15 |
Tahta |
17 |
2 |
6 |
9 |
14-30 |
12 |
Relegation to the Third Division |
|
16 |
Asyut Cement |
17 |
1 |
8 |
8 |
14-24 |
11 |
Relegation to the Third Division |
In case that two or more teams are equal on points, the main ranking criteria are the results of the head-to-head matches.
Round 18 (20 March 2021)
Media – Eastern Company
KIMA Aswan – Telephonat
Dayrout – Aluminium
Qena – Asyut Cement
Asyut Petroleum – Sohag
Tahta – El Minya
Beni Suef – Shaban Qena
Fayoum – M.S. Samasta
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