Zamalek cruise past Abu Qir to reach Egypt Cup last 16

Ahmed Ghandour , Thursday 9 Jan 2025

Cairo giants Zamalek secured their place in the Egypt Cup round of 16 with a comfortable 2-0 win over second-tier rival Abu Qir Fertilizers at the Cairo International Stadium on Thursday.

Zamalek
Zamalek players celebrate after winger Ahmed 'Zizo' Sayed scored the opening goal in his side's 2-1 win over Abu Qir Fertilizers in Egypt Cup round of 32 on Thursday. Photo: Zamalek's official X account.

 

Winger Ahmed ‘Zizo’ Sayed opened the scoring in the 21st minute, while Mostafa Shalaby sealed the victory with a late strike in injury time.

Zizo broke the deadlock with a well-executed direct free kick that took a deflection off the Abu Qir defensive wall, leaving the goalkeeper helpless as the ball nestled into the corner of the net.

However, the Zamalek star missed a chance to double the lead in the 41st minute after failing to convert a penalty that goalkeeper El-Sawy superbly saved.

The White Knights finally doubled their advantage in the first minute of injury time through winger Mostafa Shalaby.

Shalaby latched onto Abdullah El-Said’s cross following a swift passing sequence, drove into the penalty area despite tight marking, and slotted the ball past El-Sawy into the bottom left corner with a composed finish.

Zamalek will now face Modern Sport FC in the next round, who advanced to this stage after a commanding 5-2 victory over El-Shams on Sunday.

The Cairo giants will be aiming to chase their 29th title of Egypt’s secondary club competition, looking to bounce back from last year’s disappointing exit after a shocking 5-3 penalty shootout defeat to Talae El-Geish, following a 1-1 draw in regulation time.

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