SC Zamalek manager Christian Gross is confident his side can still triumph in the Confederation Cup after their 1-0 defeat by RS Berkane in the first-leg at the Stade Municipal on Monday morning, but has acknowledged that errors were made in Sunday's loss.
The White Knights had held on for large periods and seemed set to take a goalless draw into the return leg in Alexandria in a week’s time but a 94th-minute winner by Togo frontman Kodjo Fo-Doh Laba saw the Egyptian giants leave Morocco empty handed.
As reported on the club’s website, the Swiss manager has admitted that Zamalek's finishing let them down on the big occasion.
"We made mistakes, and the goal came from a counter-attack by the Moroccan team," he began. "We had some opportunities to score, but our players didn't succeed and missed more than one chance against a strong opponent, who have got quality players."
Zamalek have won five Caf Champions League titles in their history, but have never tasted success in the continent’s secondary cup competition.
"We will fight during the return match in Cairo to win and compensate for the loss, especially as our goal was to achieve a positive result in Morocco," Gross added. "We entered the first leg to achieve a positive result, but the Moroccan team managed to score a goal in the last minute of the second half.
"We will try to compensate in the return game in Cairo to achieve the African championship,"
Berkane defeated CS Sfaxien of Tunisia 3-2 on aggregate to advance to the final, while Zamalek dispatched another Tunisian side-giants Etoile du Sahel-1-0 to progress.
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