TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup: Zamalek Road to the Final

• Amassed the highest points (16) in the group stages without a single loss
• Victorious in Egyptian derby Quarter-Final against Modern Future 
• Appetising two-legged final against former champions, RS Berkane

Winners of the 2019 TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup, Egyptian football powerhouse Zamalek SC are eager to end what could be a five-year wait to lifting a continental title.

The Egyptians are preparing to face off against fellow North African counterparts, Morocco’s RS Berkane in a two-legged TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup Final on 12 and 19 May that will see either of the two former champions reclaiming their title.

CAFOnline takes a look at Zamalek’s journey to the two-legged final against the two-time winners who are equally strong contenders for the title.

Preliminary Round: 4 – 3 aggregate winners over AS Arta

It was a rather shaky start for the Egyptians in the Preliminary round when they had to reverse a 2-0 loss against Djibouti’s AS Arta. In what would be deemed as a disastrous exit, the Egyptians showed class in a convincing 4-1 reverse victory that saw them advance to the group stages.

Group Stage: Finished top of Group B with 16 points

Zamalek made their title ambitions quite clear in the group stages after finishing top of Group B in a pool consisting of Abu Salem (Libya), Sagrada Esperanca (Angola) and CO Coyah (Guinea).

Zamalek’s dominant display saw them finish top of the group with 16 points from five wins and a single 0-0 draw against Sagrada Esperance away from home.

Their group stage performance saw them finish as the team with the highest points in the group stages with 16 points.

Quarter-Finals: 3-2 aggregate win over Modern Future

Competition became a stiffer in the quarter-final when the former champions had to face off against fellow Egyptian Premier League counterparts, Modern Future FC.

They survived a scare in the first leg after coming back from a goal down to seal an important 2-1 away victory courtesy late goals in both halves by Hamza Mathlouthi and Ahmed Sayed’s late penalty conversion.

The second leg was a highly tactical affair by the two Egyptian sides. Zamalek had to show their championship mettle once again as Ahmed Hamdi levelled matters for the match to end in a 1-1 draw that was enough for the former champions to advance.

Semi-Finals: 3-0 aggregate win over Dreams FC

Facing a highly spirited Dreams FC was not going to be an easy task for Zamalek who had to overcome a side who on their debut made history by reaching the semi-finals of the competition.

The Ghanaian looked to be well on course to causing yet another upset after initially holding Zamalek to a goalless draw in their own backyard, before crushing to a 3-0 defeat in Kumasi in a result that sees Zamalek through the final.