A naïve mistake by Talae El-Gaish keeper Mohamed Bassam allowed Zamalek to claim a narrow 1-0 win on Tuesday in the fourth matchday of the Egyptian Premier League. Left-back Mohamed Abdel-Shafy crossed a free kick inside the box but the keeper let the ball slip past his hands into his own net in the 50thminute. Abdel-Shafy's goal condemned the military team to their first league defeat and fired the Whites to second place in the Group B table with six points, four behind leaders Ismaily but they still have a game in hand. Zamalek arrived at the game under a lot of pressure after a surprise 1-0 home defeat to Ismaily last week. There have been some doubts surrounding the encounter as the White Knights – the club's hardcore supporters – vowed to defy the crowd ban and enter the stadium. However, after negotiations the hundreds of fans who came to the 30 June stadium in the fifth settlement district of northern Cairo left after threats that Zamalek would be penalised and deducted points. On the pitch, Helmi Toulan's men failed to capitalise on their possession against a resolute and compact Gaish's defence. The coach made some changes to his starting lineup with striker Ahmed Ali, midfielders Islam Awad and Hani Saied handed their first starts of the season. They had to rely on the inspiration of gifted forward Mohamed Ibrahim – who has a big burden to carry after the departure of Mahmoud Abdel-Razeq 'Shikabala' and Ahmed Eid – but he failed to provide the spark Zamalek needed. After the interval Zamalek switched their jerseys from the pink away shirt to their classic white home kit. It turned their luck as five minutes later Abdel-Shafy broke the deadlock. They failed to pile the pressure on their hosts and failed to create clear-cut chances but Moemen Zakareya and Gaafar had some rare opportunities that weren't well exploited. ## (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at@AO_Sportsand on Facebook atAhramOnlineSports.) http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/91059.aspx
