In his first press conference on Thursday, the returning Ahli boss aimed a swipe at Zamalek, joking about the 6-1 date which resembles the Reds’ most famous victory over their arch-rivals.

Jose also indicated that he will try to make sure Zamalek won’t win anything for a seventh straight year, prompting the Whites’ outspoken football director Ibrahim Hassan to reply.

“Many thanks to Jose for motivating our players,” Hassan, who was a member of the Zamalek side that got hammered by Jose’s Ahli in 2002, told FilGoal.com.

“All our players will now try to work harder than ever, not just to keep the six-point lead over Ahli, but also to extend it.

“If Hossam (manager) and I had the chance to send Jose a present for his quotes, we would have done it!

“He spoke about Shikabala recently, so the player’s morale will be in the sky and he will try to maintain his match-winning performances. We are really grateful to Jose.”

Jose indicated last week that Ahli could win the league if other teams managed to stop Shikabala from winning points for Zamalek.