Wamba Leonel Djuffo scored his first goal of the competition as Algerian champions CR Belouizdad got off to a winning start in the 2022/23 CAF Champions League following their 1-0 win against Zamalek.
A neatly dispatched second-half spot kick from the Cameroonian forward this Friday was all it took for the visitors to earn maximum points from their trip to Cairo.
Both sides entered the match day one fixture hoping to get their season started rightly, but it turned out to be a forgettable afternoon for the White Knights.
Zamalek were on a run of two wins in ten domestic games and their struggles were exposed from the start.
Belouizdad came close to scoring barely 17 minutes into the contest when Wamba was picked with a great ball into the box. Fortunately for the hosts he shot wide.
Zamalek grew in confidence as the contest went by but were far from convincing and chances were few and far between.
The game remained goalless till the interval though CR Belouizdad had the best chances and should have scored if not for the brilliance of Zamalek shot stopper Mohamed Awal.
CR Belouizdad had the reward for their efforts in the 57th minute when the Referee pointed to the spot after handled the ball inside the box in an attempt to block a cross from CHAN 2022 MVP Eddine Mrezigue.
Wamba stepped up and converted from the spot to beat Awal for the first time in the afternoon.
Wamba, 20, was booked in the 77th minute following a mistimed challenge.
Though Zamalek rallied and tried to come back into the game through Zito and Dunga late on- plus introduced players from the bench, the visitors defended their advantage till the end.
Alexis Guendouz, loser of the CHAN 2022 final last weekend had another clean sheet. His sixth in the last six games for club and country.
The game finished 1-0 in favor of the visitors who return home to prepare for the Group D match day two fixture against multiple winners Esperance of Tunis.
The winner of the 2019 U-17 AFCON with Cameroon is off to a perfect start to life in the CAF Champions League.
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