The 43-year-old was appointed as the White Knights' manager late in November, after the sacking of his predecessor Henri Michel who failed to keep the Cairo side on an even keel.

Under Hassan's management Zamalek lost to Harras Hodoud, drew with Ahli before registering three consecutive wins over Masri, Asyut Petroleum and Mansoura.

Now Egypt's most-capped player is convinced that Zamalek have overcome a host of chronic disadvantages at a very short notice.

"We solved a large number of Zamalek's problems which appeared over the past years," Hassan told the post-match press conference after his side's 1-0 win over Mansoura on Sunday.

"But we still have a long way to go.

"Our biggest challenge of late was the psychological barrier."

Zamalek kicked off the season with Michel Decastel at the helm, but the Swiss boss was fired only after the team's three opening games.

Henri Michel was installed later on, but he was also given the sack after a string of poor results.