Zamalek SC host APR FC in Cairo on Saturday in the second leg of the CAF Champions League second preliminary round, holding a one-goal lead but without left-back Mahmoud Bentayeg, midfielder Ahmed Rabie or striker Nasser Mansi.
Zamalek SC welcome APR FC to Cairo this Saturday, 24 October 2026, for the second leg of the CAF Champions League second preliminary round. The Egyptians hold a 1-0 win secured in the first leg at Kigali’s Amahoro Stadium, a slender advantage that coach Moatamed Gamal will need to make count.
Three players will be missing, two for medical reasons and one through an internal decision. Moroccan left-back Mahmoud Bentayeg is ruled out with a hamstring injury picked up in the Cairo derby, while midfielder Ahmed Rabie is unavailable for at least two weeks because of a broken nose. Added to those absences is that of striker Nasser Mansi, left off the matchday squad by an internal disciplinary suspension handed down by the club management, according to Ahram Online.
Mansi, first-leg scorer, absent
The scenario is frustrating for Zamalek: the scorer of the winning goal in Kigali will not be on the pitch in Cairo. Nasser Mansi had struck late in the first leg. His absence, tied to an internal disciplinary sanction whose reason has not been specified, deprives the attack of its first-leg goalscorer.
It was the club management that took this decision, and Gamal must work around it. According to Ahram Online, the coach responded: “We know the match will be difficult, but my players know how to handle such situations. We must stay focused to avoid any surprise.”
A reshuffled left flank and midfield
Besides Mansi, the absence of Mahmoud Bentayeg on the left flank and of Ahmed Rabie in midfield forces the staff to revise their plans. The Moroccan full-back, injured in the Cairo derby, will miss this fixture. Rabie’s broken nose, sustained in circumstances that have not been specified, rules him out for at least two weeks.
These absences come as Zamalek have just followed up with a 1-0 win against Asyut Petroleum on Tuesday in the league. A victory by the narrowest of margins, as in the first leg. But against a Rwandan side Gamal describes as “well organised”, the margin remains slim.
A ticket to the group stage
The stakes tonight are clear: direct qualification for the CAF Champions League group stage. Zamalek, 1-0 winners in the first leg, must now confirm at home. APR FC, beaten 1-0 in Kigali, travel to Cairo with a deficit to overturn.
Gamal summed up the objective: “Our primary goal is to reach the group stage, and we are facing a well-organised team.” The group stage draw is scheduled for after the weekend.