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Egypt’s Al Ahly Produce Emphatic Away Win in Champions League Semi

FILE: Al Ahly players celebrate after Al Ahly's Mohamed Afsha scored his side's opening goal during the FIFA Club World Cup soccer match between Seattle Sounders FC and Al Ahly FC in Tangier, Morocco, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
FILE: Al Ahly players celebrate after Al Ahly's Mohamed Afsha scored his side's opening goal during the FIFA Club World Cup soccer match between Seattle Sounders FC and Al Ahly FC in Tangier, Morocco, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
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Egypt’s Al Ahly Produce Emphatic Away Win in Champions League Semi

FILE: Al Ahly players celebrate after Al Ahly's Mohamed Afsha scored his side's opening goal during the FIFA Club World Cup soccer match between Seattle Sounders FC and Al Ahly FC in Tangier, Morocco, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
FILE: Al Ahly players celebrate after Al Ahly's Mohamed Afsha scored his side's opening goal during the FIFA Club World Cup soccer match between Seattle Sounders FC and Al Ahly FC in Tangier, Morocco, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

A double from striker Percy Tau and a third goal from Mahmoud Kahraba handed Egypt’s Al Ahly a runaway 3-0 away triumph over Esperance of Tunisia in the first leg of their African Champions League semi-final on Friday.

Tau, the South African international who previously played at Brighton & Hove Albion, opened the scoring with a left-footed drive after eight minutes and doubled the lead 10 minutes into the second half as the Cairo club made a giant stride in their bid to reach next month’s final.

Kahraba applied the final touch to a swift counter-attack in the 75th minute to add a third goal and leave Esperance with a near impossible task in next weekend’s return in Cairo, Reuters reported.

Friday’s game was played behind closed doors as punishment for crowd violence when Esperance beat JS Kabylie of Algeria in their quarter-final last month.

Al Ahly are Africa’s most successful club with 10 previous Champions League titles and have reached five of the last six finals. They were runners-up to Wydad Casablanca last year.

Wydad host Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa in the first leg of their semi-final on Saturday.

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Álvarez Scores Late to Give Atletico Madrid 1-0 Win over Celta Vigo

Atletico's Julian Alvarez celebrates after scoring the 0-1 goal during the Spanish LaLiga soccer match between Celta Vigo and Atletico Madrid, in Vigo, Spain, 26 September 2024. EPA/SALVADOR SAS
Atletico's Julian Alvarez celebrates after scoring the 0-1 goal during the Spanish LaLiga soccer match between Celta Vigo and Atletico Madrid, in Vigo, Spain, 26 September 2024. EPA/SALVADOR SAS
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Álvarez Scores Late to Give Atletico Madrid 1-0 Win over Celta Vigo

Atletico's Julian Alvarez celebrates after scoring the 0-1 goal during the Spanish LaLiga soccer match between Celta Vigo and Atletico Madrid, in Vigo, Spain, 26 September 2024. EPA/SALVADOR SAS
Atletico's Julian Alvarez celebrates after scoring the 0-1 goal during the Spanish LaLiga soccer match between Celta Vigo and Atletico Madrid, in Vigo, Spain, 26 September 2024. EPA/SALVADOR SAS

Atletico Madrid picked up momentum ahead of the derby against Real Madrid with a 1-0 victory over Celta Vigo thanks to Julián Álvarez's 90th-minute winner Thursday in the Spanish league.
Álvarez poked home a cross by Antoine Griezmann to give Diego Simeone’s team the win in Vigo.
“What matters are the three points,” said Álvarez, Atletico's big-money offseason signing. “If it’s 1-0 or 5-0, what is important is to get the three points. We knew it was going to be a difficult match against Celta here.”
Atletico remains two points behind second-place Madrid going into Sunday’s match at Atletico’s Metropolitano Stadium. Both are chasing Barcelona, which has won its first seven league games this season.
Atletico struggled to create scoring opportunities until Griezmann curled a left-footed cross into the area. Álvarez ran between a couple of defenders to poke the ball into the net with his right foot, The Associated Press reported.
It was the 24-year-old Argentina forward's second goal since joining Atletico from Manchester City.
Celta, which has lost four of its last five matches, had come close to scoring several times, being stopped by yet another solid performance by goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
Atletico was coming off a 1-1 draw at Rayo Vallecano but had won its previous three games in all competitions.
After the derby at the Metropolitano, Simeone's team will visit Benfica in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Villarreal near the top Ayoze Pérez scored twice as Villarreal came from behind to win 2-1 at promoted Espanyol and stay near the top.
Pérez has scored six goals in seven matches, one fewer than the league's leading scorer, Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski.
It was the fourth win for Villarreal, whose only loss was a 5-1 rout at home against Barcelona in the previous round.
Spanish media said the referee of the match was hit by an object thrown from the stands while he left the field after the final whistle.
Las Palmas remains winless Last-place Las Palmas drew 1-1 with Real Betis to remain winless after seven rounds. It hasn't won in 21 straight league matches going back to last season, when it barely avoided relegation.
The hosts scored first with Alberto Moleiro in the ninth minute and 11th-place Betis — coming off two consecutive victories — equalized with Giovani Lo Celso in first-half stoppage time.
Getafe is the only other team without a league win this season.