Egyptian Premier League round-up: Zamalek suffers as Ahly, Pyramids claim wins

CAIRO – The 21st week of the 2023-2024 Egyptian Premier League season saw Pyramids FC maintained their perfect start to the season with a fifth successive domestic win as Zamalek, ZED, Pharco and El-Geish dropped points.

Al-Ahly, Al-Masry, Al-Ittihad and Ceramica Cleopatra emerged victorious.

At Cairo’s Air Defence Stadium, Pyramids FC achieved an exciting 2-1 victory over Modern Future.

Striker Mohamed Farouk scored the opening goal for Modern Future in the 20th minute.

Congolese forward Fiston Mayele levelled the score for Pyramids in the 77th minute as defender Karim Hafez secured the winning goal for the Sky Blues team from the penalty spot in the stoppage time.

The result pushed Pyramids FC into the lead of the domestic table with 41 points from 18 games and still has three in hands. Modern Future remained in 11th place with 26 points from 19 matches and still has two games in hands.

At Borg el-Arab Stadium in Alexandria, Al-Masry of Port Said stunned Talae el-Geish 2-0.

El-Geish conceded an own goal in the 49th minute due to a mistake by their goalkeeper Mohamed Shaaban.

Striker Salah Mohsen added the second in the 71^st minute after converting a cross from team-mate Hussein el-Sayed and unleashed a quite stunning strike into El-Geish’s net.

The result propelled Al-Masry to second place in the standings with 37 points from 20 games, while Talae el-Geish slipped to eighth place with 28 points from 19 matches.

Zamalek’s quest for a fourth consecutive win in the domestic league was halted by Smouha at the Borg el-Arab Stadium in Alexandria ending their winning streak.

The White Knights previously achieved victories against Al-Ahly, NBE Club, and Al-Ittihad of Alexandria in their last three matches respectively.

The game sole goal came through AbuBakar Liadi in the 52nd minute.

The result pushed Smouha into 6th place in the domestic table with 31 points from 20 matches, while Zamalek positioned in 12th place with 24 points from 15 matches and still has six in hands.

At Cairo International Stadium, Enppi claimed a ruthless 5-1 triumph over NBE Club.

Ghanaian forward Yaw Annor opened the scoring for NBE Club in the 27^th minute following a powerful shot into Enppi’s goalkeeper Abdul Rahman Samir.

Striker Ahmed Ameen levelled the score for the Petroleum side in the 44^th minute.

Enppi’s midfielder Modi Nasser scored twice in the 55^th and 74^th minutes respectively.

In the dying moments of the match, midfielder Mostafa Dowidar and Youssef Labib added the fourth and fifth in the 88^th and 90+6 minutes.

The victory left Enppi to 4th place with 32 points from 21 matches as NBE Club dropped into 15th place with 18 points from 21 games.

In the same week, Al-Ahly thrashed El-Gouna 3-0 at Cairo International Stadium on Saturday. The Red Devils seemed on course for victory when midfielder Emam Ashour gave them the lead in the 37^th minute.

Defender Mahmoud Metwaly added the second after converting a right corner from Tunisian Ali Maaloul into El-Gouna’s net in the 62^nd minute.

Winger Mahmoud Kahraba netted the third in the 81^st minute from the penalty spot.

The result pushed Al-Ahly into 10th place in the domestic table with 27 points from 13 matches, while El-Gouna, having played seven more games, remained in ninth place with 28 points.

At Borg el-Arab Stadium in Alexandria, Ismaili rallied to beat Pharco FC 2-0.

Midfielder Omar el-Saaei opened the scoring in the 22^nd minute as defender Mohamed Desouky secured the victory for Ismaili by converting a penalty kick in the 76^th minute.

The win moved Ismaili to 13^th place in the table on 22 points from 21 games as Pharco FC dropped into 17^th place with 13 points from 19 matches.

Al-Ittihad of Alexandria claimed a 2-1 win over Baladeyet el-Mahalla at Alexandria Stadium.

Al-Ittihad Angolan striker Mabululu opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 43^rd minute as defender Hesham Salah levelled the score for Baladeyet el-Mahalla in the 63^rd minute.

Midfielder Abdel-Ghani Mohamed snatched the winner for the Alexandrian side in the 76^th minute.

The result pushed the Alexandria’s based-club to fifth place at the standing with 32 points from 20 games as Baladeyet el-Mahalla remained at 14th place on 19 points from 20 matches.

Arab Contractors overcame ZED FC 1-0 win at Cairo International Stadium.

The game sole goal came from playmaker Ammar Hamdi in the 16^th minute.

This victory left Arab Contractors in 16th place with 15 points from 20 games as ZED FC remained in third place with 33 points from 21 games.

The Egyptian Premier League, meanwhile, will be paused from May 27 due to the national team’s training camp, managed by twins Hossam and Ibrahim Hassan, in readiness for the upcoming World Cup qualifying matches against Burkina Faso and Guinea Bissau scheduled from June 3 to 10.

The Pharaohs are gearing up to clash with Burkina Faso and Guinea Bissau in the upcoming third and fourth rounds of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers respectively.

Egypt has been placed in Group A alongside Burkina Faso, Guinea Bissau, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Sierra Leone.

Currently, the Pharaohs are leading Group A with six points from two games played.

The Pharaohs secured victories in their first two qualifying matches against Djibouti 6-0 in the first round and Sierra Leone 2-0 in the second round.