Zamalek returned to winning ways in the Egyptian Premier League after defeating Petrol Asyut 1-0, securing three crucial points in the title race before resuming their African campaign.
The match took place on Tuesday evening at the Borg El Arab Stadium as part of the seventh matchday. Moatamed Gamal’s side entered the fixture aiming to put the Cairo derby defeat behind them and maintain their position among the frontrunners as a new series of key fixtures approaches.
Ahmed Sherif scored the only goal of the match in the 26th minute, pouncing on a loose ball inside the penalty box after the Petrol Asyut defense attempted to clear Mohamed Shehata’s pass, slotting his strike into the bottom-right corner to hand the White Knights the lead.
The journey to victory was not without its testing moments. Mohamed Awad and Ahmed Fetouh intervened to deny an equalizer early in the second half, before the goalkeeper pulled off another crucial save in the 58th minute following a misplaced pass from Mostafa El Zenary, preserving Zamalek’s lead until the final whistle.
The win lifted Zamalek’s tally to 16 points, temporarily moving them up to third place—level with Al Ahly, who have played a game less and hold the advantage on placement. The result also narrowed the gap to two points behind leaders Pyramids ahead of their clash with Tala’ea El Gaish later on Tuesday evening.
The defending champions registered their fifth victory in seven league outings, alongside one draw and one defeat, scoring nine goals and conceding three. Their solitary loss came against Al Ahly in a 2-0 defeat on October 11, before initiating their bounce-back with an away win against Rwanda’s APR FC in continental competition.
Zamalek now await a decisive test on Saturday, October 24, when they host APR FC at the Cairo International Stadium in the second leg of the CAF Champions League second preliminary round, holding a 1-0 advantage from the first leg as they look to capitalize on their lead and secure passage to the group stage.
Just four days later, the White Knights return to domestic duty against El Mokawloon El Arab on Wednesday, October 28. Facing an opponent boosted by a 3-0 victory over ENPPI, the two upcoming fixtures will require the technical staff to balance securing continental qualification with maintaining their points tally on the domestic front.
