Champions Zamalek will be desperate not to drop any points when they face Ismaily on Monday to avoid losing ground on Egyptian Premier League leaders and arch-rivals Ahly.

Ahly currently lead the league table with 50 points from 22 matches after crushing Ittihad El-Shorta 5-3 on Sunday, nine ahead of second-placed and title holders Zamalek.

Beating the sixth-placed Ismaily would be a good boost for the Whites, who will be looking for revenge for the 1-0 loss to the Dervishes in the league's reverse fixture. 

Under new coach Alex McLeish, Zamalek lost in the league debut of the Scottish boss against El-Entag El-Harby before beating Arab Contractors.

The club also won one match in the Egypt Cup and two in the African Champions League to reach round of 16 in both competitions.

On the other side, Ismaily will be eying a return to winning ways after losing the last league match agajinst Ittihad of Alexandria.

Midfield crisis for Zamalek

Zamalek will have to do without key duo Mahmoud Kahraba and Mostafa Fathi due to suspension and injury respectively.

McLeish is expected to field winger Ahmed Hamoudi from the start, especially after he netted his first local goal in the recent 2-0 Egypt Cup win over second-tier Shabab El-Dabaa on Thursday.

"Beating Ismaily is important in continuing our campaign for the title successfully," Zamalek's football director Ismail Youssef said on Saturday.

"The match won't be an easy one, especially since our opponent includes a host of talented players. We asked our players to be fully concentrated only on winning," he added.

Influential defender Islam Gamal, who scored against Zamalek in the first round, has recovered from an injury to boost Ismaily amid the absence of his injured teammate Mahmoud Metwally.

Ismaily coach Khaled El-Kammash has urged his players to deliver against the champions to keep alive their chances of ending the league among the top four.

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