CAIRO — A moment of brilliance from Ahmed Sayed ‘Zizo’ earned Zamalek a hard-fought 1-0 CAF Confederation Cup home win over Angola’s Sagrada to preserve their perfect group stage record.
The Egyptian giants had dominated from the outset but found the Angolan defence in stubborn mood until Zizo struck shortly before the break.
The talented forward caught the visitors’ keeper off guard with a thunderous drive from range in the 42nd minute to break the deadlock.
It proved enough to clinch a third straight victory for Zamalek and strengthen their stranglehold on Group B.
The win leaves the five-time African champions at the top of Group B with nine points from three matches.
Zamalek once again lacked a clinical edge in the final third but a third clean sheet means they are well on course to reach the knockout phase.
Zamalek will face Sagrada again in the fourth round of the group stage matches on December 20th.
Defeat compounded a disappointing start for Sagrada as they remain stuck on three points from three matches.
But Zamalek appear in pole position to progress after taking the next step towards the Confederation Cup quarter-finals in dogged fashion.
Elsewhere, A Sankara Karamoko brace inspired ASEC Mimosas to a 2-0 CAF Champions League triumph away to Botswana’s Jwaneng Galaxy.
The prolific Ivorian striker struck in the second-half to strengthen the visitors’ position at the Group B summit heading into the midway stage of the campaign.
Karamoko opened the scoring on 57 minutes when he latched onto Mofosse Tresor’s pass to slot ASEC ahead.
And the 20-year-old sealed victory late on with his second of the game courtesy of Serge Pokou’s unselfish assist.
The result sends the resurgent Ivorians three points clear of Galaxy at the top of the table as they claimed a second win in three matches.
Jwaneng had sat level on points with opponents before kick-off at the Obed Itani Chilume Stadium.
But Karamoko’s clinical double secured a vital victory to catapult ASEC above their hosts.
Botswana outfit Galaxy stay second place in the group behind the high-flying Ivorians with Tanzanian side Simba in third place while Moroccan side Wydad Casablanca are bottom with no points.
But with ASEC hitting top gear, a place in the quarter-finals now looks well within their grasp in this wide open group.
The job is not yet complete with three rounds of matches still to play for Julien Chevalier’s talented outfit.
Yet on this evidence few would bet against ASEC going all the way to clinch a first TotalEnergies Champions League crown since 1998.
Meanwhile, DR Congo giants TP Mazembe held Nouadhibou of Mauritania to a goalless in their Group A match at Stade Cheikha Ould Boidiya in Nouakhott.
