With Al Ahly reportedly interested in bringing in a new striker, Soccer Laduma can confirm that their top target Walid Azaro is open returning to his former club to play alongside Percy Tau and Hussein El Shahat.
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The Red Devils have not enjoyed the best of campaigns so far. After the high of collecting a massive trophy haul in Marcel Koller's full debut season in Cairo, which included triumphs in the Egyptian Premier League and the CAF Champions League, 2023/24 has been characterised by more lows.
While the Club of the Century did have a good start to the domestic league season, they have since lost ground in the title race to Pyramids FC, seeming losing pace with their fellow Cairo-based side as a consequence of their participation in the inaugural African Football League.
Ahly were one of eight teams to take part in the first-ever edition of that tournament, and while many expected them to win the trophy, not only did they lose in the semi-finals, but they were also eliminated by eventual champions Mamelodi Sundowns without winning a single game.
The toll the month-long tournament took on Koller's squad as had implications for their domestic and continental form as well, with the north African juggernauts having won only three of their eight games since being knocked out of the AFL by Sundowns.
At the beginning of the season, when the record African champions decided to sign a player who had just left Borussia Dortmund in Anthony Modeste, it was expected that he would assist with bagging more goals for the side, but his spell in the Egyptian capital so far has been underwhelming.
The Frenchman has just two goals in 11 games for Ahly, a tally that is of major concern to president Mahmoud El Khatib and his fellow club executives.
Rumours suggest that Koller is still backing Modeste to be a crucial member of the squad, but El Khatib is said to be more interested in re-signing their former star Walid Azaro.
The Moroccan forward joined the Egyptian powerhouse in 2017, but after a prolific 2017/18 campaign at the Cairo International Stadium, during which he scored 26 goals in all competitions, the Atlas Lion representative began to garner serious interest across the world.
Ahly rejected various offers for his signature, most notably from China, but Azaro would end up moving to the Gulf, where he has carved out a great career for himself.
The Ait Melloul native left the 43-time Egyptian champions for Al Ettifaq in 2020, before he departed Saudi Arabia to sign with Emirati outfit Ajman Club in January 2022. The 16-cap Morocco international is a big player for the team, having bagged 13 goals and 12 assists in all competitions last season.
In 2023/24, he's picked up right where he left off as he already has seven goals in his first eight matches of the campaign.
However, the forward's contract runs out at the end of this season, something the Red Devils feel they can capitalise on as soon as the January window.
Ahly are interested and sources close to the player have exclusively revealed to Soccer Laduma that, while Azaro is leaning more towards staying in the Middle East, should a compelling financial offer arrive from Egypt, he would be open to returning to Cairo.
Ahly have not yet formalised their interest, and when Soccer Laduma tried to contact the club concerning the rumours, there was no response, but the player's camp is believed to be aware of their willingness sign him.
The club would, however, need to sell one of their other foreign players in order to accommodate his arrival.
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Should Ahly successfully sign Azaro, the Egyptians would have a chance to start a star-studded front three of Tau, El Shahat and the lanky forward, likely to the envy of any African side.
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