Midfielder Mahmoud Sobhi scored the winner in the 70th minute when he rose at the far post to head home a left-wing corner.

Ittihad could have extended their advantage on several occasions but the strikers’ wastefulness did them no favor.

Taha Basri’s men climbed into fourth spot on 13 points while the newly-promoted Olympic remained 12th in the 16-team table with seven points.

Elsewhere, ENPPI temporarily moved into second place after claiming a deserved 2-0 victory over Tersana.

Nigerian striker Minusu Buba, who arrived from Arab Contractors in the close season, opened the scoring in the 15th minute after being fed by Mohamed Ibrahim’s deft through pass.

Egypt right-back Ahmed Al-Muhammadi ensured the win 13 minutes later with a precise header.