By Amr Shaheen BBC Sport Online, Cairo

Al Ahly secured their first win in the African Champions league on Sunday, with a 1-0 victory over Congolese champions TP Mazembe in Cairo.

After two successive defeats to Raja Casablanca and Jeanne d'Arc, the victory over Mazembe gives the Egyptians a fighting chance of qualifying for the semi-finals.

Ahly dominated the match but missed several goalscoring chances in the first half.

It took a moment of inspiration from Ahmed Belal to break the deadlock in the 48th minute.

The win comes as a relief for Jo Bonfrere, their Dutch coach, for whom a third defeat could have resulted in the loss of his job.

"We had no other choice but to win," said Ahly official Taher Abu Zeid.

"The real work for qualification will start in two weeks time, when we fly to Lubumbashi to play Mazembe at home."