Enyimba coach Stanley Eguma is confident that the team will qualify for the second round of the 2024-24 CAF Confederation Cup despite their poor start to the competition.
The People Elephants played out a disappointing 1-1 draw against Al Masry in Uyo on Sunday to dampen their chances of making it to the next round.
The nine-time NPFL Champions have only won once in Group D, drawing two, and losing two to sit third on the log with five points.
Zamalek currently top the group with 11 points followed by Al Masry in second place with six points.
Enyimba need a win against Zamalek in Egypt, while they will be hoping that the result in the game between Al Masry, and Black Bulls turn out in their favour to stand a chance of making it to the quarter-finals of the competition.
Eguma is optimistic that Enyimba can defeat Zamalek in Egypt to book a place in the last eight of the competition.
He said: “It was really unfortunate we couldn’t win the game. We trained very hard and mapped out strategies to beat the opponents. Unfortunately, they came to play the games of their lives.
“Our players respected them so much, especially in the first half; we were lethargic in our approach, and that caused the early goal we conceded. That goal demoralized us so much and most of these players have not played at this level.
“It’s not the end of the game. We will still have the next game to play. If Al-Masry can come here and play the game of our lives, we can go to Egypt, and who knows what the outcome of the other games will be. We are still optimistic, it is not over until it is over.”
Eguma was appointed to replace Yemi Olanrewaju two weeks ago following poor performances, but the experienced coach led Enyimba to two wins, and two draws in his first four matches in all competitions.
Up next for Enyimba is a trip to Egypt to take on Zamalek on Sunday before the NPFL clash against Kano Pillars on January 23rd.
The People Elephants currently occupy the seventh position in the NPFL log with 27 points from 17 matches.
