Coach of Egypt's Zamalek, Jesualdo Ferreira (R) of Portugal, reacts during their Egyptian Premier League derby soccer match against Al Ahly at Borg El Arab "Army Stadium", west of the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, July 21, 2015 (Reuters)
Zamalek manager Jesualdo Ferreira was full of praise for the new signings after the league champions reached the Egypt Cup quarters with a 3-1 win over Haras El-Hodoud on Saturday.
Attacking midfielder Mostafa Fathi, a second-half substitute, hit a brace and Ibrahim Abdel-Khalek, who joined in the summer from Smouha, scored to help Zamalek continue their bid towards a third straight Egypt Cup title.
Zamalek outclassed El-Hodoud throughout the game, though many of their scoring chances were denied by the military side's goalkeeper, Ahmed Saad, who produced one of his finest displays.
"The teams who miss such a number of goal-scoring chances normally lose but my players proved otherwise tonight," Ferreira told the post-match news conference.
Zamalek, who ended an 11-year wait for an Egyptian league triumph, signed a handful of new players to bolster their squad in the summer transfer window.
Two of those shined against Hodoud, with attacking midfielder Mahmoud Kahraba creating two goals and Abdel-Khalek wrapping up the win with an easy tap-in after being set up by the former.
"I'm aware of the important role played by the newly-signed players. They will be a useful addition to our squad for next season," Ferreira added.
Zamalek will face Club Sfaxien of Tunisia in the 5th matchday of the CAF Confederation Cup group stage next week. A point will be enough to lift the White Knights through to the last four with two games to spare.
"We are suffering from fatigue but we hope to reach the Confederation Cup semis against Sfaxien," Ferreira added.
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