A late goal from striker Ahmed Gaafar gave Zamalek a 1-0 home victory over a resilient Arab Contractors side on Wednesday, their fifth successive Egyptian Premier League win. Gaafar broke the offside trap to score the winner five minutes from time for his fourth goal this season. Contractors piled on pressure late in the game and were unlucky not to secure a share of spoils when a header from Nigerian defender Shamusideen Tijani struck the bar in stoppage time. The win maintains Zamalek's slim chance of winning the league title for the first time since 2004. The Cairo giants, who have suffered one defeat in seven matches since coach Hossam Hassan took over in November last year, lie fifth in the league table with 27 points, 11 behind leaders and arch-rivals Ahli. Contractors, who could not build on their emphatic 4-1 win over Ittihad last week, are tenth on 22 points. Cutting Edge Zamalek laid siege to Contractors' area in the first but lacked the cutting edge, wasting several clear-cut opportunities to break the deadlock.
Midfielder Hossam Arafat almost put the White Knights ahead after two minutes when he capitalized on a mix-up between a Contractors defender and keeper Mohamed Al-Akabawi. Their blunder shifted the ball to Arafat, who dragged his shot horribly wide with the goal gaping. Energetic playmaker Alaa Ali, who played alongside Shikabala behind lone striker Gaafar, was a constant menace to opposing defense but lacked the killer instinct. He tried his luck with some low shots that narrowly missed the target before the break. Two minutes before halftime, Shikabala rattled the crossbar with a powerful free-kick. Zamalek, who had no choice but to leave Gaafar playing on his own due to shortage of attacking options, failed to keep up their momentum in the second period. Their somewhat relaxed approach gave Contractors room to roam around but they could not trouble Zamalek keeper Abdul-Wahed Al-Sayed. Zamalek hardly threatened Contractors after the interval but managed to claim all three points after some neat play from Ali. A defense-splitting pass by the 22-year-old, who was given a new lease of life by Hassan, released Gaafar who rounded Al-Akabawi to slot into an empty net.
