The Cairo giants, who were eliminated in last year’s quarter-final, began their African Confederation Cup group-stage campaign with a narrow 1-0 win over ZESCO United at Cairo International Stadium.

The victory moved the five-time CAF Champions League winners, Zamalek, to second in Group D on goal difference behind Egypt’s Masry, who earlier beat South Africa’s Kaizer Chiefs 2-1.

“We were able to end the game early if we managed to score the easy chances we got in the first half. I won’t accuse the players of carelessness, but there was a better way to deal with those chances,” Abdel-Raouf told beIN Sports TV channel after the game.

“At many times, we make things more difficult for ourselves. Many players suffer from pressure after playing several games with the national teams recently, and also other players just returned from injuries,” the coach added.

Zamalek’s next step will be visiting Kaizer Chiefs in South Africa on 30 November before facing Masry in the third round at Alexandria’s Borg El-Arab Stadium on 25 January.

They will meet Masry again in Alexandria on 1 February, travel to Zambia to face ZESCO on 8 February, and conclude the group stage by hosting Kaizer Chiefs in Cairo on 15 February.

Ahead of the next phase, Abdel-Raouf stressed that his team should pass this difficult period quickly, stressing that winning ZESCO’s game is the most important thing in comparison to the team’s previous poor starts at the same round.

“I wasn’t satisfied with the striking and defensive performances... and finally, we must deal with all the circumstances that surround the team. Winning the next games will provide us with more calmness and rest,” he concluded.

(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)

Follow us on:

Facebook

Instagram

Whatsapp