Zambian club side Nkana have left themselves a mountain to climb if they are to end the 30-year jinx against Egyptians giants Zamalek after the latter held out to a goalless draw at Nkana Stadium in Kitwe on Saturday. It was the first leg of the Orange CAF Champions League second-round clash and now it will be Zamalek’s turn to host Nkana this coming weekend in Egypt.
The clubs have met four times in the African club showpiece and the Cairo ‘White Knights’ have triumphed on aggregate every time. Even a change of competition brought no luck to Nkana as they were eliminated by Zamalek 13 years ago in the now defunct African Cup Winners Cup.
The five-time African champions Zamalek soaked up the early pressure from Nkana and were set up to defend from the onset. Zamalek coach Ahmed “Mido” Hossam had most of his players behind the ball and said after the match to Supersport.com, “My players played very well and we had many chances to win, but we were unlucky. I still insist that Nkana is a very good side and that will make us prepare even harder for the second game. I must say they played very well in the first half. But in the second we were better and we had three chances to score through Hazem Emam and Ahmed Ali but blew it,” he added.
It was the third successive time that an encounter between Nkana and Zamalek has finished in a deadlock although the Egyptians have eventually always gone on to excel in their home games to advance at the expense of their Zambian opponents. The second leg will be played in El Gouna this coming weekend. The winner of that encounter in the return leg advances to the group stage while the loser will be drop down to the pre-group stage of the Orange CAF Confederation Cup.
Confederation of African Football (CAF) News
Support InfoStride News' Credible Journalism: Only credible journalism can guarantee a fair, accountable and transparent society, including democracy and government. It involves a lot of efforts and money. We need your support. Click here to Donate