Bourj FC won 2-1 over AC Sporting and will play the 2021 Challenge Cup final

Sunday, 25 July 2021, 5 pm local time (2 pm UTC), Amin Abdelnour Stadium, Bhamdoun (Aley), Lebanon, semifinals of the Lebanese Challenge Cup.

AC Sporting, newly-promoted to the Lebanese Premier League, played very well against the favourites Bourj FC, but the yellow-and-black title holders came back from 1-0 down to win 2-1 and qualified for the Challenge Cup final for the second time in a row. Will they win back-to-back Challenge Cup titles? They will be again favourites in the final, when they will face AC Tripoli, a team which they gave already defeated in the first match of Group A. However, it would probably be a different story in the final.

The match against AC Sporting was not an easy one. Bourj FC dominated large parts of the game and had the first big chance, when Abou Baker Al Mel "Bako" shot went to the crossbar (32'). Sporting gave a good response and missed a great opportunity right before the break (41').

The goals arrived only in the second half, when the match became very disputed. Sporting broke the deadlock, as Hassan Fardous scored from a penalty: 0-1 (57'). Bourj players took complete control of the game and attacked ferociously, winning also a penalty for a hand ball. Abou Baker Al Mel took the responsibility and equalized: 1-1 (66').

Abou Baker Al Mel (in yellow) played an important part in Bourj FC's win. Source: elmaestrosport.com

The final minutes were very tense. Each team tried to score the winning goal, but Bourj FC seemed more determined, and eventually their willingness paid off. A ball sent home by a Sporting defender was taken in his hands by goalkeeper Mohamad Zahr, as he was pressed by Abbas Atwi "Onika". The referee gave an indirect free kick for Bourj FC. The same Abbas Atwi "Onika" had the inspiration to take the free kick, sending a perfect cross (while everyone expected a short pass) to Youssef Atriss, who headed the ball in: 2-1 (85'). 

Bourj FC: Abdel Karim Saleh - Youssef Anbar (Mohamad El Dor 70'), Khodor Hallak, Hassan Bitar, Ibrahim Abou Hamdan - Hussein Ibrahim, Abbas Atwi "Onika" - Abou Baker Al Mel (Samih Damaj 75'), Mohamad Kassem (Youssef Atriss 70'), Hussein Al Outa (Hassan Ghanem 75') - Ahmad Moghrabi (Ali Merkabaoui 13'). Manager: Fouad Hijazi.

The Challenge Cup final will probably be played next Sunday, the 1st of August, in the afternoon, and most likely at Fouad Chehab Stadium in Jounieh. The match will be broadcasted either by MTV Sports or by the FA Lebanon channel on YouTube.

Bourj FC qualified for the Challenge Cup semifinals as winners of Group A after 2-0 over Shabab El Bourj

Tuesday, 20 July 2021, 5:30 pm local time (2:30 pm UTC), Fouad Chehab Stadium, Jounieh, Lebanon, Challenge Cup, Group A, match 3.

Bourj FC and Shabab El Bourj met again in a local derby in the last match of Group A. Their rivalry was visible in the field, and also the score reflected that there is no "cooperation" between the two: Bourj FC were already qualified to the semifinals, while Shabab El Bourj needed at least a draw... but Bourj FC had no mercy of their neighbours, and this result actually determined that AC Tripoli is the second classified in the group and therefore qualified for the semifinals, while Shabab El Bourj are out of the competition.

Bourj FC are again in the semifinals of the Challenge Cup. Source: Bourj FC Facebook page

Indeed, during the match, it was easy to see that Bourj FC played with no pressure, they created lots of opportunities, while their opponents seldom reached the opposite box. Just like in the previous game, the first goal came right before the break: after a corner from the left side, the ball reached Youssef Atriss at the edge of the box, and he scored with a beautiful shot, to the left of the goalkeeper: 1-0 (43').

In the second half, despite their need to equalize, Shabab El Bourj seemed unable to create any danger, while Bourj FC continued to control the game and to have numerous goal chances. Three minutes after he came in as a sub, Samih Damaj reached the ball a second before the goalkeeper and scored with a header, finalizing a cross from another sub, Ali Merkabaoui: 2-0 (72').

Bourj: Abdel Karim Saleh - Mohammad El Dor, Hassan Abdallah Bitar, Shadi Skaff, Youssef Anbar (Ibrahim Abou Hamdan 69') - Mohammad El Faour (Ali Kharroubi 78'), Abbas Atwi "Onika" - Abou Baker Al Mel (Samih Damaj 69'), Youssef Atriss (Mohammad Kassem 76'), Hussein Al Outa (Ali Merkabaoui 69') - Akram Moghrabi. Manager: Fouad Hijazi.

Shabab El Bourj: Hadi Khalil - Ali Harb, Bilal Nasrallah, Yasser Achour, Mohammad Baker El Husseini, Hassan Dib, Hassan El Hajj, Mehdi Tlays Abou Mohsen, Mohammad Sibaii "Wartan", Moussa Zayyat (Mohammad Saleh 69'), Hassan El Kadi, Ali Imad Moussawi. Manager: Mohammad Nasser.

In the semifinals, on Sunday, Bourj FC will face newly-promoted Sporting Club Beirut, while AC Tripoli will play against the other newly-promoted team, Hikma / La Sagesse (winners of Group B).

Cusco FC lost 1-0 to Universidad César Vallejo in the first round of Stage 2 - Peruvian First Division

Monday, 19 July 2021, 1:15 pm local time (6:15 pm UTC), Monumental Stadium, Lima (neutral ground), Peru, round 1, Stage 2, Peruvian First Division.

Cusco FC is in a surprising relegation position after Stage 1, and was expected that they would try to improve their squad during the mid-year transfer window. However, the technical staff led by manager Claudio Vivas probably considered that there is no such need for better players, and just a few were added to the already existing roster. Víctor Cedrón was the only new player who actually played from the beginning in the first game of Stage 2, but he did not show why he was brought in.

Actually, Cusco FC as a team failed to justify the trust that many had, that they would play much better in Stage 2, and would get better results, to avoid relegation. Their game was dull, decent sometimes, but not at all meant to get a win. Universidad César Vallejo was the better team, and fully deserved to win, as they were the only ones who really looked for a winning goal. They controlled the game most of the time, attacked more and more, while Cusco defended well and only tried to capitalize on the speed of their wingers, especially Carranza, on the counter.

José Daniel Rivera (Cusco FC, in black) had little chances against Emiliano Ciucci (Universidad César Vallejo). Source: andina.pe

In the first half, there were no real goal opportunities, as the teams closed down all the possible ways to get near the goal. Universidad César Vallejo increased their pressure in the second half, when opportunities started to emerge, one after the other, while Cusco FC manager did not nothing to stop the offensive waves of the opponents. Goalkeeper Nicosia saved several times, the defenders did their job, even the referee was on Cusco's side when he did not award a penalty for César Vallejo, after a clear foul of Rossi on Vélez. 

But this could not go forever like this, and eventually Universidad César Vallejo did score the winning goal: Millán found a miraculous pass to Vásquez, whose shot was saved by Nicosia, the ball came back to Santiago Silva, whose shot was saved by Céspedes, and the ball came back again to Jairo Vélez, who finally found the gap between the goalkeeper and Céspedes to send it home from close range: 1-0 (71').

It was only after the goal that Cusco FC tried to do something in the attack. They had a few chances, the biggest of them all was a shot by Edson Aubert from just outside the box, but Grados saved spectacularly (82'). They also might have been given a penalty, for a hand ball inside the box, but the referee overlooked (again), so 1-1 for penalties not given.

UCV: Grados - Morillo (Quinteros 60'), Ciucci, Fleitas, Vásquez - Figuera, Ysique, Millán, Vélez (Rodas 90'+2') - Mena, S. Silva (Da Silva 77'). Manager: José Del Solar.

Cusco: Nicosia - Orbe, Rizzo (Velásquez 77'), Rossi, Céspedes - Tello (Espinoza 77'), Abisab - Carranza, Ramúa (Montes 65'), Cedrón (Aubert 72') - Rivera. Manager: Claudio Vivas.

Referee: Joel Alarcón.

Yellow cards: Vélez 29', Ysique 45'+1', Mena 52' - Cedrón 54'.

The next match for Cusco FC would be Sunday, 25 July, against last classified Binacional. They would really need to get a win again - their only win in Stage 1 was against Binacional, but the pressure is even bigger right now. Another problem is that Gonzalo Rizzo was injured and had to be replaced, and Cusco FC does not have too many centre backs able to play at this moment, as Diego Minaya is also injured (from the beginning of the season). Carlos Orbe played as centre back in the final minutes of the game against Universidad César Vallejo, but it would be unusual for him to be used in that position from the beginning of the match. 

The other problem seems to be in the attack. Ramúa seems to be out of form, and nobody else is creative enough to break the opponents' defence. Moreover, few balls get to the striker, who might be again Montes, as he has just recovered after an injury and played the last 30 minutes or so against César Vallejo, but rarely in a position to score goals. Rivera is an excellent player, but not in the no. 9 position, while the wingers, such as Carranza or Rengifo, are good on counterattacks, when speed is needed, but are not so useful in a game when Cusco FC is supposed to have the ball and to control every attack, especially when there is nobody to finalize, to get the final touch of the ball, to send it in.

Bourj starts the 2021 Challenge Cup with a 1-0 win over AC Tripoli

Tuesday, 13 July 2021, 5:30 pm local time (2:30 pm UTC), Fouad Chehab Stadium, Jounieh, Lebanon, match 1 of Group A, Lebanese Challenge Cup.

The 2021-2022 season started in Lebanon with the Elite Cup (for the top six teams of the previous season) and the Challenge Cup (for teams classified 7 to 10 and the two newly-promoted teams). Bourj only classified seventh in 2020-2021, so they started again the Challenge Cup, where they are in fact defending champions, as they won the last edition in 2019. The 2020 Elite and Challenge cups were not held due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Bourj FC had an interesting transfer window. They lost several key players - captain Walid Ismail to Hekmeh / La Sagesse, striker Fadel Antar to Shabab Sahel, and the talented young forwards Zain Al Abidin Farran and Mohammad Nasser to Al Ahed. However, they brought in many new players: playmaker Abbas Ali Atwi "Onika", from Ansar, who came back to Bourj after almost 20 years (he last played for Bourj in 2001-2002!), winger Abou Baker Al-Mel, who returned from Malaysia, midfielder Youssef Atriss, who came back after several years, last playing for Shabab Al Ghazieh. Hassan Abdallah Bitar and Youssef Anbar, both from champions Ansar, as well as Shadi Skaff, from Al Akhaa Al Ahly Aley, are meant to strengthen the defense. Strikers Akram Moghrabi, from Safa, and young Ali Merkabaoui, from Al Akhaa Al Ahly Aley, would fill the place left by Fadel Antar. Hassan Hammoud "Nouna" from Shabab Al Ghazieh and Ali Kharoubi from Al Akhaa Al Ahly Aley are good additions for the midfield, while goalkeepers Hassan Moghnieh from Ansar and Mohammad Issa from Al Islah Al Bourj Al Shimaly would compete with Abdel Karim Saleh. 

 Bourj FC starting XI. Source: Bourj FC Facebook page

The match against AC Tripoli in the first round of the Challenge Cup provided a good opportunity to try out some of the new players and to work on their integration with the existing players. Abbas Atwi "Onika" became the new captain.

The two captains, Ahmad Moghrabi (left, AC Tripoli) and Abbas Atwi "Onika" (Bourj FC) before the start of the game. Source: Bourj FC Facebook page

The match was largely controlled by Bourj FC, which attacked more and created more goal chances. In the first half, a few long-range shots by Abou Baker Al-Mel were not enough to break the deadlock. The goal finally came right before the break: Hussein Al Outa, on the left side, launched Akram Moghrabi in the box, and his shot to the far side hit the post and then came in: 0-1 (45').

Akram Moghrabi (in yellow) and Tripoli's goalkeeper, Ahmad Korhani, are both watching as the ball slowly moves towards the target. Source: Bourj FC Facebook page

In the second half, Bourj FC had several opportunities to double their advantage, but their strikers missed. AC Tripoli only started to seek for the equalizing goal in the last 10 minutes, when Abdel Karim Saleh had two great saves, keeping a clean sheet and the three points for Bourj FC.

AC Tripoli: Ahmad Korhani - Mohammad Korhani, Abdelrazzak Dakramanji, Ahmad Moghrabi (cpt.), Adnan El Kheir (Mohammad Arja 46') - Bassam Zakaria, Ghazi Hussein (Ghazi Ramzi Hussein 65'), Said El Ali (Khaled El Jassem 46') - Alaa Ezzo (Omar Khayed 84'), Ali El Rachid, Samir Abdelrahman (Fouad Eid 74'). Manager: Saad Jamil.

Bourj FC: Abdel Karim Saleh - Mohammad El Dor, Ahmad Al Khatib, Shadi Skaff, Ibrahim Abou Hamdan (Hassan Bitar 46') - Mohammad Al Faour, Youssef Atriss (Mohamad Kassem 68'), Abbas Atwi "Onika" (Ali Kharoubi 82') - Abou Baker Al Mel (Samih Damaj 78'), Akram Moghrabi, Hussein Al Outa (Ali Merkabaoui 68'). Manager: Fouad Hijazi.

Yellow card: Mohammad Al Faour 64'.

In the second match of Group A, on Saturday, AC Tripoli and Shabab El Bourj drew 1-1. Due to this result, Bourj FC are mathematically promoted to the semifinals of the Challenge Cup, where they will most likely face one of the two newly-promoted teams. In the meantime, they will have to play the decisive match for Group A, against their local rivals, Shabab El Bourj, on Wednesday, 21 July, at 5:30 pm. All matches of Group A are played at Fouad Chehab Stadium in Jounieh.

If Bourj do not lose the match against Shabab El Bourj, they will win Group A and will play against the second classified in Group B in the semifinals. If they lose, they will only classify second, and will play against the first place of Group B in the semifinals.

Telephonat Beni Suef won 1-0 over Fayoum in the last round of the Egyptian Second Division and escaped relegation

Saturday, 3 July 2021, 4 pm local time (2 pm UTC), Alassiouty Sport Resort, Fayoum, Egypt, the 30th (last) round of the Egyptian Second Division, Group A.

Telephonat Beni Suef and Fayoum met in the last round of the Egyptian Second Division, Group A, at Alassiouty Sport Resort, the home ground for both teams this season. Telephonat were officially the hosts and the match was very important for them, because they needed to win in order to maintain chances of survival in the Second Division.

Telephonat eventually won by 1-0. The only goal of the match was scored by Wael Mustafa in the 43th minute.

It was not sure until the end if this result was enough for them to stay in the Second Division. They depended on the result of Shaban Qena, which played at home against El Minya. If Shaban Qena won, Telephonat would have been relegated anyway. Fortunately for them, Shaban Qena and El Minya drew 1-1. The draw sent Shaban Qena to the Third Division, but did not help El Minya either, because Eastern Company won 5-0 and promoted to the Premier League for the first time in history.

This was the first defeat for Fayoum since the arrival of Saad Farouk as manager. They were unbeaten for eight consecutive games before this match. Fayoum eventually finished sixth, their best classification since 2015-2016.

Fayoum SC in their away kits. Source: Fayoum SC Facebook page (Youssef Hamdy)

Results and final table:

Round 30 (3 July 2021)

 

Aluminium – Beni Suef 2-0

M.S. Samasta – Asyut Cement 0-1

Shaban Qena – El Minya 1-1

Asyut Petroleum – Dayrout 4-2

Telephonat – Fayoum 1-0

Eastern Company – Tahta 5-0

KIMA Aswan – Qena 0-0

Sohag – Media 2-1

 

Final table

 

1	Eastern Company (P)	30	17	8	5	50-29	59	Promoted to the Premier League
2	Aluminium	30	17	6	7	40-23	57
3	El Minya	30	14	13	3	38-23	55
4	Media	30	12	10	8	35-28	46
5	Beni Suef	30	11	10	9	28-28	43	[1]
6	Fayoum	30	11	10	9	30-25	43	[1]
7	Asyut Petroleum	30	10	13	7	26-21	43	[1]
8	Sohag	30	10	10	10	22-21	40
9	Dayrout	30	10	8	12	45-43	38
10	Qena	30	9	9	12	29-32	36	[2]
11	KIMA Aswan	30	8	12	10	27-30	36	[2]
12	Telephonat	30	8	11	11	24-25	35
13	Asyut Cement (R)	30	8	9	13	29-37	33	[3]Relegated to the Third Division
14	Shaban Qena (R)	30	7	12	11	20-26	33	[3]Relegated to the Third Division
15	M.S. Samasta (R)	30	6	11	13	21-36	29	Relegated to the Third Division
16	Tahta (R)	30	3	6	21	27-64	15	Relegated 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.

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[1] Classification in head-to-head matches: Beni Suef 6p, Fayoum 5p, Asyut Petroleum 3p.

[2] Qena and KIMA Aswan are perfectly equal in terms of head-to-head matches and goal difference, so the next criterion to be taken into consideration is the total number of goals scored: Qena 29, KIMA Aswan 27.

[3] Asyut Cement ahead of Shaban Qena on goal difference in head-to-head matches: Asyut Cement – Shaban Qena 2-1.