Zamalek face Masry in a crunch Egyptian Premier League game on Wednesday after a war of words between both sides as they vie for a top-three position. Egypt's all-time leading scorer Hossam Hassan, who is managing Masry, infuriated Zamalek's outspoken chairman Mortada Mansour earlier this month when he appeared to mock the White Knights' 3-0 Cairo derby defeat by Ahly. Speaking after Masry conceded an extra-time goal to lose 1-0 to Ahly in the Egyptian Super Cup, Hassan said: "We would never lose to Ahly 3-0 like Zamalek." His words prompted an angry response from Mansour, who rebuked Hassan and insisted that the former iconic striker "would never have any future roles at Zamalek", the club that Hassan led to a host of titles as a player in the early 2000s before managing them for two unsuccessful spells. Zamalek's previous league meeting with Masry, which ended in a 2-1 win for the Cairo club in September, was also overshadowed by a tantrum from the fiery-tempered Hassan He responded to taunts from a small contingent of Zamalek fans by lifting two red and green t-shirts, in reference to the colours of the kits worn by Ahly and Masry. Hassan made his name with Ahly, where he played for around 15 years before making a shocking move to cross-town rivals Zamalek in 2000. Zamalek's new coach Ehab Galal is eyeing his second win at the helm after the team ended a three-match winless run by beating Dakhleya 2-1 last week. He immediately made several January signings to strengthen an underachieving squad, with Zamalek signing winger Emad Fathi and striker Nana Poku from Maqassa and Tunisian right-back Hamdi Nagguez from Etoile du Sahel. Fathi marked his debut with the winning goal against Dakhleya while Poku was included in the squad for the Masry game for the first time. However, Zamalek have lost an influential defender in Ali Gabr, who agreed to join English Premier League side West Bromwich Albion on a six-month loan deal for 500,000 euros, according to Mortada Mansour. Masry are third in the league table with 34 points, two ahead of fifth-placed Zamalek. (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)
