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The 98th minute of Saturday's CAF Confederation Cup final first leg at the 5 July Stadium in Algiers was already extraordinary before Ahmed Khaldi stepped up to take the penalty. In the preceding two minutes, Zamalek had thought they had won the match, seen the goal disallowed by VAR, watched a teammate sent off for protesting the decision, and conceded a spot kick for a foul that the Egyptian players and their supporters still dispute. Khaldi sent goalkeeper El Mahdi Slimane the wrong way. USM Alger 1-0 Zamalek. The stadium erupted.
The second leg is in Cairo this Friday, May 16, at the Cairo International Stadium. Zamalek need to win by at least two goals to claim the title outright. A one-goal win sends the tie to penalties. USM Alger, for their part, need only to avoid losing by two.
It is exactly the kind of setup that African football finals have produced for decades, and the ingredients are compelling: the defending champions against one of Egypt's most storied clubs, a single goal separating them, a crowd at the Cairo International Stadium that will be hostile in a way the 5 July Stadium crowd, fervent as it was, cannot match in intensity.
How the First Leg Was Won and Lost
For most of the ninety minutes, this was a match that neither side was willing to open up. USM Alger, Champions in 2023, controlled possession without creating clear chances. Zamalek, organized and disciplined in their defensive shape, sat deep and looked for the counter. Their Angolan import Chico Banza had Algiers' best chance of the first half, a looping effort that a USM Alger defender cleared off the line before the goalkeeper could respond.
The second half followed the same pattern. USM Alger pushed, Zamalek held. Islam Merili and Dramane Kamagate probed through the midfield. Zamalek's defensive line, anchored by Hossam Abdel-Maguid, did not break. With ten minutes left, the match appeared to be heading for a goalless draw, and Zamalek coach Motamed Gamal brought on Ahmed Sherif and Ahmed Rabie to shore up the defence.
Then came stoppage time. Brazilian substitute Juan Bezerra, who had been on the pitch for eighteen minutes, picked up the ball thirty metres from goal, ran at the USM Alger defence and finished past goalkeeper Oussama Benbot with a composed individual effort that had the Zamalek substitutes on their feet. The celebration lasted thirty seconds.
The referee halted play and went to the VAR monitor. The review found that Hossam Abdel-Maguid had fouled Rayane Mahrouz in the build-up, catching him in the back with a knee. The goal was disallowed. A penalty to USM Alger. Mahmoud Bentayg, already on a yellow card, protested so furiously that the referee produced a second and sent him off. Then Khaldi scored. The match ended before Zamalek could respond.
What Each Side Takes to Cairo
USM Alger travel with a one-goal lead, a hostile crowd on their side in the second leg, and the psychological confidence of having produced when it mattered in circumstances that could have broken a team. Their coach has managed this group through a long continental campaign and the players understand what a measured away performance looks like. A 0-0 in Cairo wins them the title.
Zamalek take something to Cairo too, even if it does not feel like it right now. They were the better side for long periods of Saturday's match. The goal Bezerra scored, before VAR intervened, was one of the individual moments of the entire competition. They have the crowd, the stadium, and the history: Zamalek have won the CAF Confederation Cup twice and are one of African football's great institutions.
What they do not have is margin. A draw in Cairo hands USM Alger the trophy. A one-goal win is not enough. They must score twice without conceding once, against a team that has shown across this competition they know how to close out matches.
The Cairo International Stadium on Friday night will be loud in a way that has decided African finals before. Whether it is enough is what the second leg will answer.
