The Bafana Bafana forward has netted twice in his first match for the Egyptian giants
Bafana Bafana forward Percy Tau has scored twice on his debut for Egyptian giants Al-Ahly, as they defeated Ismaily SC 4-0 in Wednesday’s top flight opener.
The 27-year-old was named in Pitso Mosimane’s 21-man matchday squad for their opening showdown against their top tier rivals as they look to clinch their record-extending 43rd domestic league title.
Tau is one of a swathe of exciting new signings at Ahly, with ex Simba SC attacker Luis Miquissone, and duo Ahmed Abdelkader and Hossam Hassan also included in the Red Devils’ squad.
The former Brighton man netted twice inside the first 35 minutes, with his first coming in the 22nd minute when he latched onto a through ball, dribbled through the middle of the Ismaily defence, before sending a left-footed shot beyond the hosts’ stopper.
For Tau’s second, seven minutes later, he reacted first to meet a cross, evading the pressure of a defender, before scooping the ball beyond the advancing stopper.
By this point, Ahly were cruising to victory, with left-back Ali Maaloul having earlier opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 21st minute.
Tau lasted for 72 minutes of the encounter, before being replaced by Abdelkader.
His replacement later rounded off the victory two minutes from time with Ahly’s fourth during a resounding one-sided triumph, as the Red Devils laid out a title warning to their top flight rivals, despite losing Aliou Dieng to a 74th-minute red card.
Tau’s debut performance will come as a major boost for new Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos, who has included the attacker in his South Africa squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Ghana and Zimbabwe.
Since leaving Brighton, Tau has been made to wait to make an impact for Ahly, after picking up a hamstring injury while in international duty.
He returned to full training earlier this month, but did not feature as the Red Devils began their Caf Champions League title defence against USGN.
Tau’s signing for Ahly means a reunion with ex-Mamelodi Sundowns coach Mosimane, with the pair enjoying great success together with Masandawana.
They won the Caf Champions League together in 2016 and the Caf Super Cup a year later, having won the PSL two years previously.
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