Fayoum SC and KIMA Aswan drew 1-1 in the Egyptian Second Division

Saturday, 12 June 2021, 4 pm local time (2 pm UTC), Alassiouty Sport Resort Stadium, Fayoum, Egypt, 27th round of the Egyptian Second Division, Group A.

Great match between two teams which are in very good shape, as they are unbeaten for several rounds already, and both teams had several consecutive wins before the game, therefore expectations were high. The difference lies in the fact that Fayoum are in a secure position, in the upper part of the table, while KIMA Aswan badly need the points to avoid relegation.

Fayoum SC had the upper hand in the first half, when they controlled the game, especially after minute 20', when chances to the opposite goal began to emerge. Ahmed Al Qarmouti (21' and 29') and Anas Muhammad "Shendy" (23') missed great opportunities. However, a KIMA Aswan defender's handball inside the box led to a penalty for Fayoum, but Karim Al Shafei hit the post (33'). The goal was in the air, and finally arrived after a corner from the right side, taken by Mohamed Adel Gomaa: the goalkeeper saved initially Karim Al Shafey's shot, but then Ahmed Abd Elhakim scored from the centre of the box: 1-0 (39').

Ahmed Abd Elhakim (in red) scored the only goal for Fayoum. Source: Alassiouty Sport Resort Facebook page

In the second half, Fayoum had several opportunities to double their advantage, especially by means of Anas Muhammad "Shendy". Gradually, the visitors realized that they had a chance to get a point and began to play more in the offensive, while the hosts made a step back and entered a defensive mode. The game changed completely towards the end, as KIMA Aswan attacked more and more dangerously, and eventually succeeded to equalize, after several consecutive shots, initially saved by Mostafa Gaber "Dida", but finally found the way to the goal by means of Mohamed Hussein "Benzema": 1-1 (86').

In the final minutes, Fayoum tried to score the winning goal, but the visitors defended very well and the game ended with a draw, 1-1.

Fayoum starting XI: Mostafa Gaber "Dida" - Mostafa Ahmed Islam "Carlos", Mahmoud Kamal "Schmeichel", Ahmed Abd Elhakim, Mohamed Adel Gomaa - Karim Al Shafey, Ahmed Emad Dabbash, Ahmed Hassan - Ahmed Al Qarmouti, Anas Mohammad "Shendy", Abdullah Deka Magdy. Manager: Saad Farouk. In the second half, Ahmed Saleh, Hussein Khaled, Ala Al-Din Metwally, Ali Abo Elela, and Gaber Gaber Mohamadi also came in.

In the other matches, the leaders Eastern Company were surprisingly defeated by Shaban Moslemen Qena, but Aluminium and El Minya drew 0-0 in their head-to-head match and missed a great opportunity to get closer to the top spot. Moreover, Aluminium lost their postponed match, 1-0 away at Samasta, another big surprise. The same Samasta lost 5-0 to Qena, at home! Teams at both ends of the table try to get the best results possible as the season is close to its end, with three rounds remaining. 

In the next round, the match between Eastern Company and El Minya might be very important for promotion. Both teams need to win. El Minya would be out from the race for the top spot in case they do not win. Aluminium are also close, waiting around the corner, and they have an apparently easier game, at home, against Asyut Cement.

Full results, table and fixtures:

Round 27 (12 June 2021)

 

M.S. Samasta – Qena 0-5

Shaban Qena – Eastern Company 2-1

El Minya – Aluminium 0-0

Asyut Cement – Telephonat 1-0

Tahta – Sohag 0-1

Beni Suef – Asyut Petroleum 0-0

Fayoum – KIMA Aswan 1-1

Media – Dayrout 1-0

 

Table

 

1	Eastern Company	27	16	6	5	42-26	54	Promotion to the Premier League
2	Aluminium	27	15	6	6	34-20	51
3	El Minya	27	13	11	3	31-18	50
4	Media	27	12	10	5	34-22	46
5	Beni Suef	27	11	8	8	26-24	41
6	Fayoum	27	10	9	8	27-22	39
7	Dayrout	27	10	8	9	42-36	38
8	Asyut Petroleum	27	8	12	7	19-18	36
9	Sohag	27	9	9	9	19-18	36
10	Qena	27	8	7	12	26-30	31
11	Shaban Qena	27	7	9	11	18-24	30
12	KIMA Aswan	27	6	11	10	24-30	29
13	Telephonat	27	6	10	11	18-22	28	Relegation to the Third Division
14	M.S. Samasta	27	6	10	11	19-31	28	Relegation to the Third Division
15	Asyut Cement	27	6	8	13	25-35	26	Relegation to the Third Division
16	Tahta	27	3	6	18	25-53	15	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 28 (19 June 2021)

 

Asyut Petroleum – Fayoum

Sohag – Beni Suef

Telephonat – Tahta

Aluminium – Asyut Cement

Eastern Company – El Minya

M.S. Samasta – Shaban Qena

Qena – Dayrout

KIMA Aswan – Media