CAF Confederation Cup debutants Stellenbosch FC held onto a 0-0 draw at home to Zamalek by the skin of their teeth and will now look to cause a memorable quarterfinal upset in Cairo on Wednesday.
A point-blank save from Sage Stephens off a Nasser Mansi header preserved a draw for Stellenbosch at Cape Town Stadium in the first leg.
It was not the best football Stellenbosch are capable of - let alone Zamalek - but when they were running out of leg, the South African side shut up shop and fought to avoid an away goal. In that, they succeeded even though Zamalek had the better of the last few minutes.
"We learned our lessons playing against RS Berkane in the group stages that we've got to start well and not concede early," Stellenbosch head coach Steve Barker said in his post-match press conference.
"I think the first 25-30 minutes was a little bit of a cat-and-mouse situation - us seeing what they had to offer and us seeing what we had to offer, with no real chances being created. I felt that from around the 25th minute to half-time, our players grew in confidence."
However, Barker admitted that despite a bright start to the second half: "When we made a couple of changes, the last 10 minutes - I think they (Zamalek) got a bit of momentum and there were one or two errors at the back.
"It gave them a little bit of impetus and obviously they created a big chance - a massive save from Sage and then it hit the post."
Barker claimed that Stellenbosch generally held their own in the first leg. However, in the second, even the most optimistic Stellies supporter will know that Zamalek will be a tougher side to beat.
A small but vocal contingent of Zamalek supporters showed up in Cape Town despite it being on the other end of the continent to Cairo. Stellenbosch can expect any galvanising effect they had on the White Knights to be multiplied tenfold when they visit the defending champions.
Key details:
Date: Wednesday, April 9 at 5:00 PM CAT (3:00 PM GMT, 11:00 AM ET)
Venue: Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt
How to watch: The match is available on SuperSport.
Team news:
In addition to long-term injury absentees Ahmed Hamdi and Hamza Mathlouthi, Zamalek were also missing Shikabala through injury in the first leg. It is unclear how far along he is in his recovery from a bruised knee.
Expected lineups:
Zamalek
LWB Mahmoud Bentayg | CB Sallah Moussaddaq | CB Mahmoud Hamdy | CB Hossam Abdelmaguid | RWB Omar Gaber
CM Abdallah Said | CM Mohamed Shehata | CM Nabil Emad
ST Seifeddine Jaziri | ST Nasser Maher
Stellenbosch
GK Sage Stephens
LB Fawaaz Basadien | CB Thabo Moloisane| CB Ismaël Touré | RB Enyinnaya Godswill
LM Chumani Butsaka | CM Sihle Nduli | CM Genino Palace | RM Devin Titus
ST André de Jong | ST Ashley Cupido
Stats:
Stellenbosch were the third of three South African clubs to keep a clean sheet this season in their CAF quarter-final first leg. (Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates did the same in their CAF Champions League ties.)
Zamalek have only lost one of their last 22 CAF Confederation Cup fixtures.