Zamalek, playing before their enthusiastic supporters for the first time in six months, thumped Chad's Gazelle 7-0 in Alexandria on Sunday to virtually seal their place in the African Champions League round of 32. In-form youngster Mohamed Ibrahim, striker Ahmed Gaafar and substitute Abdoulaye Cisse scored two goals apiece to give Zamalek a commanding first-leg lead in the competition's preliminary round. It was Zamalek's biggest-ever win in African competitions, eclipsing their 6-0 victory over Rwanda's APR FC 11 years ago. Zamalek were roared on by around 5,000 spectators at Alexandria's Egyptian Army Stadium as the Egyptian authorities allow limited fan presence in continental games, unlike domestic competitions which are being played behind closed doors due to security concerns. The success-starved Cairo side built on their fine Egyptian Premier League start to hammer their modest opponents. It took them 15 minutes to open the scoring when towering frontman Gaafar tapped in into an empty net after Gazelle's keeper could only parry a shot from attacking midfielder Ahmed Eid. Ibrahim doubled the lead in the 28th minute when he superbly exchanged passes with Gaafar to jink into the area and place a low shot into the bottom corner of the net. Gaafar ended the match as a contest on the stroke of halftime with another follow-up effort and Mali's Cisse, back after a lengthy absence, made it 4-0 with a header that a Chad defender just failed to clear off the line on 74 minutes. Veteran midfielder Hassan, who made his first appearance after recovering from a serious knee injury, added the fifth in the 81st minute and Ibrahim notched his second of the night with a venomous shot three minutes later. Cisse completed the rout with two minutes remaining as Zamalek emphatically kicked off their campaign to win Africa's elite club competition for the first time since 2002. Ahram
