The Egyptians wasted a number of clear goalscoring chances during the full 90 minutes of the game, scoring only two goals from their numerous occasions.
They needed to wait until the 73 rd minute to open the scoring, thanks to Ibrahim Adel’s shot from the edge of the area.
Substitute forward Abdel-Rahman Atef added the second, two minutes from time, when he met a pinpoint cross from Emad Mayhoub with a nice header to fire home.
The second leg will take place in Zambia on Sunday. The winner will qualify for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, which will be held in Morocco next June.
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