Zamalek and Al Masry bounce back with victories in Nile Egyptian League’s title phase

Photo credit: Zamalek SC

Matchday 2 action continued in the title phase of the Nile Egyptian League, featuring two clubs recently eliminated from the CAF Confederation Cup: Zamalek and Al Masry.

Haras El Hodoud 0–2 Zamalek

Zamalek secured a morale-boosting win over hosts Haras El Hodoud with a 2-0 scoreline.

Veteran playmaker Abdallah El Said opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 45th minute.

With this goal, El Said strengthened his position as the third all-time top scorer in Egyptian Premier League history with 133 goals—trailing only Hassan El Shazly (176) and Hossam Hassan (168).

Zamalek's second goal came in the 89th minute through Nasser Mansi, who slotted home in a very good way after a one-on-one chance.

This goal brings Mansi’s tally to nine goals, putting him joint top of the league’s scoring charts alongside Al Ahly’s Emam Ashour.

Photo credit: Zamalek SC

Defenders Mahmoud Hamdy El Wensh and Mahmoud Bentayg were both shown yellow cards and will miss the upcoming league match against Al Masry due to suspension.

The victory moves Zamalek up to 38 points in third place on the title phase table, two points behind Al Ahly—pending the final decision regarding a potential three-point deduction for Al Ahly, who failed to show up for their first-round clash against Zamalek.

Haras El Hodoud remain on 22 points in ninth place.

Zamalek had recently exited the CAF Confederation Cup at the quarter-finals after a 1-0 home defeat to South Africa’s Stellenbosch, following a goalless draw in the first leg.

Al Masry 4–0 Petrojet

In the other title phase fixture, Al Masry—who were also eliminated from the Confederation Cup quarterfinals recently by Tanzania’s Simba—earned a 4-0 home win over Petrojet.

Senegalese striker Pape Badji stole the show, coming off the bench in the first half to score a hat-trick.

Badji replaced the injured Salah Mohsen in the 24th minute, and although he received a yellow card just two minutes later, he quickly turned things around.

He netted Al Masry’s opener in first-half stoppage time (47’) with a strike that hit the crossbar and bounced into the net after a one-on-one breakaway.

Midfielder Mido Gaber doubled the lead in the 66th minute with a header from a Khaled Sobhy assist.

Badji then scored his second and Al Masry’s third in the 68th minute, this time rounding the goalkeeper before finishing.

He completed his hat-trick in the 82nd minute with another header, this time from a delivery by Abderrahim Daghmoum.

After this win, Al Masry remains fourth with 34 points, while Petrojet is eighth with 25 points.

The defeat also ends Petrojet’s five-match winning streak across all competitions.