(DNE File Photo)
The matches of the 26th and 27th weeks of the Egyptian football premier league were played over the course of the last week, as Zamalek SC retained the top spot, widening the gap with their historic rivals Al-Ahly.
Week 26
Zamalek SC cruised past Al-Ittihad Al-Sakndary thanks to goals from tireless midfielder Omar Gaber and marksman Bassem Morsi, sealing a 2-0 win.
ENNPI, chasing Zamalek for the top spot in the table, struggled to secure a 4-2 win against bottom table contender Al-Asyuti Sport, who, despite seeing their Nigerian striker Nakani sent off, kept the game a nail-biter until the final minutes.
Al-Ahly managed to turn the tide to their favour in the last three minutes in their game against rock-bottom Damanhour, scoring two goals through Peter Ebimobowei and Abdalla El-Said to clinch a 2-1 win with the Red Devil’s defender Sherif Abdul Fadil receiving a red card in the dying moments of the game.
Other games saw a thrilling 3-2 win for the Arab Contractors against Petrojet, 1-1 draws between Ismaily SC and Itthad Al-Shorta, Raja and Wadi Degla, and Al-Nasr and El-Gouna; a 2-0 win for El-Geish against Misr Al-Maqasa, and a 2-1 win for El-Dakhliya against Al-Masry.
Week 27
Last year’s league runner-up Smouha continued with subpar performances, with a stalemate against Al-Masry, wasting a chance to climb out of relegation zone.
Zamalek repeated the 2-0 win, feat this time against troubled Haras El-Hodoud. That meant widening the gap with Al-Ahly to 11 points, as the Cairo giants lost to Arab Contactors thanks to goal from Mohamed Salem.
Criticism heightened against Al-Ahly’s Spanish coach Juan Carlos Garrido as the hopes for the holders of the league’s winning record to retain their title fade away.
Zamalek’s closest competitor ENPPI secured an easy 3-0 win against Damanhour, retaining a four-point gap with the table leaders with a game in hand for the White Knights.
Other results were: Misr Al-Maqasa 2-1 El Dakhleya, Petrojet 1-0 Al-Nasr, Al-Ittihad Al-Sakandary 3-2 Raja, Wadi Degla 1-0 Ismaily SC, El-Gouna 2-1 El-Geish, Itthad Al Shorta 1-0 Al Asyuti Sport, Misr Al-Maqasa 2-1 El-Dakhleya.
