Egyptian giants Zamalek failed to make their dominance count as they were held to a goalless draw by Ghana’s Dreams FC in the first leg of their TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup semi-final in Cairo on Sunday.
The White Knights enjoyed the better of the chances in Cairo but lacked a cutting edge in the final third against their well-organised opponents.
Portuguese coach Jose Gomes will be concerned by his side’s profligacy ahead of next Sunday’s return in Kumasi, where an away goal for Dreams could prove pivotal.
Zamalek applied plenty of early pressure, with Shikabala, Mostafa Shalaby and Ahmed Hamdi all going close to breaking the deadlock before the midway point of the first half.
Dreams goalkeeper Solomon Agbasi had to be alert to keep out efforts from Shikabala and Travis Mutyaba as Zamalek’s wastefulness in front of goal continued.
The visitors started to gain a foothold and went close through John Antwi, whose powerful strike was well blocked by the impressive Hossam Abdelmaguid.
Shalaby was replaced by Benin international Samson Akinyoola at the break but Zamalek’s frustrations mounted, with the hosts struggling to carve out clear-cut openings.
Akinyoola dragged an effort wide before Shikabala forced a smart save from Agbasi as the offside flag repeatedly came to Dreams’ rescue.
There was still time for Ibrahima Ndiaye to rattle the crossbar late on, but ultimately Zamalek could not find a way through the stubborn Ghanaian rearguard.
Dreams will fancy their chances of reaching the final on away goals if they can shut out Zamalek again in Kumasi next weekend.
