CAIRO: Zamalek coach Hossam Hassan justified his furious outburst against the referee during his side s late 1-0 victory over Arab Contractors in the Egyptian Premier League on Wednesday. Hassan, who is known for his fiery temper, failed to maintain his calm demeanor this season when he erupted in anger while the score was goalless between Zamalek and Contractors. Cameras caught him shouting and yelling at the referee when Zamalek midfielder Hossam Arafat committed a foul on Contractors full-back Ahmed Abdul-Aziz. The Cairo side eventually won with a goal from striker Ahmed Gaafar five minutes from time. I sometimes become angry because I love this club, Hassan, who turned around Zamalek s fortunes following his arrival in November last year, said after the game. I fight for the club and its fans. I work with a great enthusiasm. Hassan, Egypt s all-time leading goalscorer, landed himself in hot water on several occasions during his managerial stints with Masri and Telecom Egypt. Masri sacked him in December 2008 for provoking home fans during a regional game at Algeria s JSM Bejaia. He has been praised for his calm approaches to matches and interviews though since taking charge of Zamalek. Strike Problems Gaafar scored the winner against Contractors to hand Zamalek a fifth successive win but he still struggled while playing on his own upfront. Hassan is relying on him as a lone frontman following the departure of Mido and Amr Zaki to English sides West Ham and Hull City respectively. I did not expect that Mido and Zaki would leave the club, the 43-year-old added. We have a problem now, we don t have enough strikers in the squad. The squad just includes two natural strikers, Ahmed Gaafar and Sherif Ashraf. We were on the verge of signing Abou Kone from Military Production but the deal eventually fell through. I have no choice now but to give midfielders advanced roles. Gaafar and Ashraf have scored seven goals between them so far this season.
