Ahli had a Mohamed Shawky goal disallowed late in the game as protests from the Egyptian side followed, before an ugly brawl took place near the end.

Subsequently, Togolese referee Kokou Djaoupe gave Ghaly his marching orders.

"I still don’t know the reason why I was sent off until now," the Egypt midfielder told Ahli's official site.

"It proves the referee's unfairness towards us. He disallowed Shawky's goal and his shaky performance led to the nervy ending.

"I think we do not deserve to lose because we played a fine game."

Ahli are now five points behind highflying leaders Kabylie, who amassed maximum points from their three games.