Yasser excels as Zamalek win on final day of season Qatari winger Hussein Yasser scored a goal and created another as Zamalek defeated El-Entag El-Harby 3-1 while Ittihad El-Shorta finished fourth after draw with Masry
Egyptian Premier League runners up Zamalek snapped a five-match winless streak on the final day of the season after beating El-Entag El-Harby 3-1 on Sunday. In-form Qatari winger Hussein Yasser was Zamalek's best performer, scoring a goal and creating another to help the Cairo giants, who finished second behind champions Ahly, to a consolation win. Yasser opened the scoring after 31 minutes following a superb individual effort. He eluded a defender with a brilliant back-heel feint before finding the top corner with the outside of his right foot. Right-back Ahmed Samir, making a rare start, doubled Zamalek's lead on 38 minutes with a low shot from inside the area to notch his first goal since returning to the club in the January transfer window. Ghanaian striker Kwabena Yaro pulled one back for El-Entag after capitalizing on a mistake from Zamalek's stand-in keeper Mahmoud Abdel-Rahim ‘Gennesh', who was making his debut, on the stroke of halftime. However, towering striker Ahmed Gaafar put the result beyond doubt ten minutes from time after neatly controlling a Yasser pass to break clear of defence and score with aplomb. Zamalek, who secured a place in the CAF Champions League, finished the season with 56 points. Their star forward Mahmoud Abdel-Razek 'Shikabala', who was serving the second of a two-match suspension, finished as the league's joint top scorer with 13 goals, on level with ENPPI striker Ahmed Abdel-Zaher. Elsewhere, Ittihad El-Shorta finished fourth despite a goalless draw with Masry in Port Said. Fifth-placed ENPPI squandered the chance to leapfrog El-Shorta after squandering their lead to draw 1-1 with Petrojet. El-Shorta, who have 47 points, finished in their best ever position due to their superior goal difference over ENPPI after the head-to-head record failed to separate them. Manager Talaat Youssef, who previously guided El-Geish to a similar fourth-place finish, is likely to leave El-Shorta amid reports suggesting that he could succeed Hassan Shehata as Egypt's coach. El-Shorta's fourth-place finish could enable them to play in next season's CAF Confederation Cup, given the uncertainty over whether the Egyptian Cup would be played.
