Substitute Osama Hosni scored twice in the second-half of extra time as Ahli edged past Zamalek 4-3 in a thrilling encounter to secure the Egyptian Cup title and complete the treble for the second successive season. Zamalek striker Amr Zaki broke the deadlock five minutes after re-start but was cancelled out by Emad Meteb seven minutes later. Substitute Mahmoud Abdul-Razeq 'Shikabala' restored the lead for Zamalek five minutes past the hour mark but Mohamed Abou-Treika grabbed the equalizer again three minutes from time. Gamal Hamza notched Zamalek's third in the 99th minute but Hosni's two successive efforts early in the second half of extra time thwarted the whites' efforts and gave Ahli the victory. The Red Devils have concluded a memorable season, having won the league, the cup, the CAF Champions League as well as finishing third in the World Club Cup. Ahli secured their 35th cup title while Zamalek have ended the season empty-handed, failing to end the three-year title-drought. Zamalek coach Henri Michel surprisingly left out Shikabala out of his starting line-up, although the talented winger was labeled as the whites' main threat in the match. Skipper Hazem Emam was introduced instead of the pacey wide-man while Alaa Abdul-Ghani partnered Tamer Abdul-Hamid in the heart of Zamalek's midfield as both of them recovered from injuries. On the other hand, Ahli boss Manuel Jose stuck with the formation he used against Ismaili in the semi-final, deploying Mohamed Barakat in the left-flank but the veteran midfield constantly cut inside to support attacking trio Meteb, Flavio and Abou-Treika. Ahli had the first sight of goal after 11 minutes when Meteb narrowly failed to connect with Abou-Treika's inch-perfect cross from the right flank. Emam tried to respond with successive shots, but his attempts did not bother Ahli keeper Amir Abdul-Hamid.
Zamalek right-back Ahmed Ghanem sent several dangerous crosses but neither Zaki nor Hamza was able to get to the end of any cross. In the 26th minute, Flavio tricked Amr Al-Safti inside the area but sent a weak curling shot that missed the target. Three minutes later, Abou-Treika brilliantly dribbled past two defenders and seemed to be on his way clear on goal but, under pressure from Al-Safti, his low shot went wide. Zamalek's only golden opportunity in the first-half came in the 33rd minute after Hamza's superb chip picked out the unmarked Zaki, whose side-footed kick from close range went just wide of the post. Abou-Treika responded few moments later when his powerful first-timer from inside the area was blocked by Zamalek keeper Mohamed Abdul-Monsef. Unmarked Ahli defender Emad Al-Nahhas almost broke the deadlock in the 36th minute when he connected with Flavio's cross to send a close-range header that went just over the bar. Three minutes before halftime, a mis-timed tackle by Zamalek left-back Tarek Al-Sayed released Flavio, who could only hit a right-footed low shot that narrowly missed the target. Zamalek were dealt a blow during the interval as Tunisian defender Wissem El-Abdi had to be replaced after sustaining an injury, making way for Ahmed Hossam. However, Zaki put Zamalek ahead in the 50th minute when he capitalized on dreadful errors by Shadi Mohamed, Al-Nahhas and keeper Abdul-Hamid. Both defenders didn't deal with a long ball from Abdul-Monsef into Ahli's area, waiting for an interception from Abdul-Hamid, whose delayed move allowed Zaki to pounce as he rose to head into the back of the net. Meteb leveled the score seven minutes later when he latched onto a flick on from Flavio to race through on goal and fire a powerful drive into the top corner of the net. Shikabala replaced the out-of-form Emam as Michel tried to regain Zamalek's attacking power. The former
