Familiar foes Zamalek, Nkana rekindle rivalry 03-26-2014 Five-time winners, Zamalek forced their Zambian opponents, Nkana to a barren draw in Kitwe last weekend in the 2014 Orange CAF Champions League 1/8th round first leg clash. The return leg is scheduled for Sunday, 30 March 2014 at the Air Defence Stadium, Cairo with the aggregate winner qualifying to the lucrative group stage of the premier continental club championship, whilst the loser drops to the Orange CAF Confederation Cup. It’s a story of ‘familiar foes’ since this marks the sixth meeting between Zamalek and Nkana in the CAF interclub competitions. With the Cairo “White Knights” emerging winners in all previous five encounters, the Zambian “Red Devils” are seeking a new chapter of history when the two sides cross swords in Cairo. The premier meeting between the two clubs was 30-years ago in the same competition (then African Cup of Champions Clubs) at the quarter finals in 1984. Zamalek, eventual winners won in Cairo 5-1 before managing a 1-1 draw in the return leg. Three years later, they faced each other yet again in the same competition, this time at the second round. Zamalek won the first leg in Cairo 2-0 before suffering a lone goal loss in Kitwe, yet progressed to the quarter finals. In 1994, both sides faced-off for the third time at the semis of the same competition, but the result was a replica of their previous meeting in 1987. Zamalek were 2-0 winners at home before tasting a lone goal loss to reach the final where they bowed to Esperance of Tunisia. A shift in competition, yet the same fate will arise in 2001. Both sides met in the defunct CAF Cup Winners’ Cup at the second round. Zamalek won first in Cairo 2-0 with the famous Hassan brothers (Hossam and Ibrahim) on target, before snatching a vital 2-2 draw away. The final meeting would come a year later in the CAF Champions League at the 1/8th round. Zamalek downed the Zambians 2-0 in Cairo before a barren draw in the return encounter handed them passage to the group stage of a competition they were later crowned champions after beating Raja Athletic Club of Morocco in the final. Unlike previous encounters, it was the reverse this time as Zamalek for the first time played the first leg away from home. Nkana coach Masautso Mwala is hoping their past record against the Egyptians will not come back to haunt them yet again. “I know we’ve had a bad run against Zamalek but that was in the past. Now we have a new team with a new vision. They are a tactically disciplined team. We were the better side in the first leg. “We just have to cause an upset in their territory with forcing some tactical changes in the return leg,” he told Cafonline. His counterpart Ahmed Hossam “Mido” however thinks otherwise, remaining upbeat that his charges will scale the hurdle. “We have done very well in the past. Our game is about attacking football and we will do that on Sunday. Conceding no goal in five games is a great achievement for us, and we will build on that to reach the group stage”, concluded Mido.
Posted on: Sun, 30 Mar 2014 04:26:55 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015