CAIRO — Al-Masry of Port Said earned a crucial victory over Zamalek, while Ghazl El-Mahalla secured their first three points of the 2024-2025 Egyptian Premier League season. Meanwhile, Smouha and Talae el-Geish played out dour scoreless draw in the third round of the competition.
At Borg el-Arab Stadium in Alexandria, Al-Masry of Port Said secured a 1-0 victory over Zamalek in a tightly contested match. Both teams played cautiously from the start, limiting scoring chances and seeing most of the action concentrated in midfield.
The match’s sole goal came in the third minute of stoppage time in the first-half, when Al-Masry’s left-winger Mohamed el-Shami finished off a cross from striker Salah Mohsen.
Zamalek’s Mahmoud Abdel-Razek ‘Shikabala’ was forced to leave the field due to injury, with Polish midfielder Konrad Michalak taking his place. In the 43rd minute, Michalak missed a golden opportunity for Zamalek, as he broke clear of Al-Masry goalkeeper Mahmoud Gad, who made a crucial save to deny him.
In the second-half, Zamalek pushed for an equalizer, intensifying their attack, but was repeatedly thwarted by Al-Masry’s resolute defense and the outstanding performance of their goalkeeper, as the match ended 1-0 in favour of the Port Said team.
With this win, Al-Masry moved to 7 points, sitting third in the league standings. They had previously won 2-0 against Talae el-Geish and drawn 0-0 with Ghazl el-Mahalla.
Zamalek, on the other hand, remained in fifth place with 6 points, having won their opening match 3-2 against NBE Club, followed by a 2-0 victory over Smouha, and now a 1-0 loss to Al-Masry.
“This is not the first time we’ve started a match without proper shape or the ability to create chances. There are certainly mistakes, and I assure the fans that we will work on correcting them,” said Zamalek’s Portuguese coach, Jose Gomes, during the post-match press conference.
Gomes also expressed his disappointment with his team’s performance in the first half, highlighting that this season’s league will be much more challenging. He emphasized that Zamalek cannot afford to drop points easily.
In another match, newly promoted Ghazl el-Mahalla earned their first victory of the season with a hard-fought 1-0 away win against El-Gouna.
Midfielder Abdo Yahya scored the decisive goal of the match in the 24th minute of the first-half, curling in a stunning long-range shot that flew past El-Gouna goalkeeper Mohamed Alaa into the bottom-left corner.
El-Gouna mounted pressure in the second-half in search of an equalizer, but their efforts were thwarted. In the 67th minute, the referee overturned a penalty decision for El-Gouna after a VAR review.
With this victory, Ghazl el-Mahalla moved up to seventh place in the standings with four points, while El-Gouna remained in 13th place with two points.
At Cairo’s Sports Authority Stadium, Smouha and Talae el-Geish played out a goalless draw, with both teams sharing a point to raise their totals to four points each in the league standings. Talae El-Geish had started the season with a 2-0 defeat to Al-Masry of Port Said but bounced back in the second round with a 3-2 away win over Ghazl el-Mahalla.
Throughout the match, Smouha applied constant pressure in an attempt to break the deadlock, but Talae el-Geish’s resolute defense held firm.
Likewise, El-Geish struggled to capitalize on their opportunities, failing to convert any chances into goals, and the match ended in a 0-0 draw.
As a result, Smouha moved up to eighth place in the standings, with El-Geish just behind in ninth, both teams on four points.
Defending champions Al-Ahly was held to a 1-1 draw by Al-Ittihad of Alexandria at Al-Salam Stadium.
At Cairo’s Air Defence Stadium, Pyramids FC claimed an impressive 3-1 victory over NBE Club in their clash.
Pharco FC, meanwhile, produced a thrilling comeback to defeat Enppi 4-3 in a dramatic encounter at Alexandria’s Haras el-Hedoud Stadium.
