"This win is very precious and very important in its timing as we are only one week away from Ahli's encounter." Marchand told daily Tunisian newspaper Al-Chorouk.

"We missed five key elements but their teammates did a great job and got a well-deserved victory."

Etoile du Sahel beat Olympique Beja 2-0 in day 7 of the Tunisian League to keep a firm grip on the League summit.

The Tunisian champions will host Ahli on October 27th while the return leg will be in Cairo two weeks later.