Zamalek SC suffered their third consecutive failure to progress to the knockout stage of the CAF Champions League, as they finished third in Group D on Friday, despite a 4-3 home win over Al-Merreikh of Sudan.
The five-time champions of the competition went out of the tournament despite a strong start, with Mostafa Shalaby and Nasser Mansy scoring two goals in the first three minutes of the game. However, Al-Merreikh fought back, with Ramadan Agab scoring on the seventh minute and Algozoli Hussein Nooh Mohamed equalizing three minutes after the second half.
Brazilian Paulo Sergio then gave the away team the lead in the 56th minute, but Zamalek regrouped, and Nasser Mansy scored two more goals in the 64th and 94th minutes to complete his hat trick and give the Royal Club a 4-3 victory.
Zamalek finished third in the group with 7 points from 6 matches, while Esperance de Tunis (10 points) and CR Belouizdad (9 points) advanced to the next stage. This marks the third year in a row that Zamalek has failed to progress beyond the group stage, with their last appearance in the knockout rounds dating back to the 2019/20 season.
