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CAF Confederation Cup

Rival Rwandan Fans Hail Rivers United

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BY: SAMMY WEJINYA

 

 

Fans of Rwandan club, Armée Patriotique Rwandaise Football Club (APR), local rivals of Rivers United’s Confederation Cup opponents, Rayon Sports  on Friday stormed the Amahoro Stadium, Kigali to cheer players of Nigerian club, Rivers United ahead of Saturday’s match.

As Rivers United held a training session at the Amahoro Stadium ahead of the decisive second leg game,  the fans, numbering well over a thousand, were in full voice, singing local songs and chanting, ‘Rivers! Rivers!

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APR and Rayon Sports are bitter rivals domestically with fans of either club known to support opponents of their foes. Eric Ravi, a well-known fan of APR, explained that Rivers United will receive ‘massive support’ from APR fans who are eager to see Rayon Sports eliminated from the 2017 CAF Confederation Cup.

“We (fans of Rayon Sports) will give massive support to Rivers United (on Saturday) because we don’t want Rayon to reach the group stage of the competition,” Ravi told supersport.com.

A female supporter of Rayon who simply identified herself as ‘Shaka’ however stated that the majority of the support on Saturday will be for Rayon.

“Of course, there will be some fans of APR who will support Rivers United on Saturday but I can tell you that the majority of the fans at the Amahoro Stadium on match day will be rooting for Rayon Sports.

“Rayon Sports is the club of the common man in Rwanda and as such, the people identify with the club.

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“Rivers United will lose on Saturday and it will be a victory for the people of Rwanda,” Shaka declared. Rivers United defeated Rayon Sports 2-0 in the first leg of the playoff tie in Port Harcourt last Sunday.

 

 

 

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Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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CAF Confederation Cup

‘Nzogbu Nzogbu’ Enyimba enyi as Enyimba limp into Confederation Cup Group stage!

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It was not easy, but the end justified the means. Enyimba had to go through the lottery of penalty shoot-out to get into the group stage of the CAF Confederation Cup on Sunday in Uyo after playing a barren draw with visiting Etoile Filante of Burkina Faso.

 The first leg also ended goalless leading to penalty shoot-out as tie breaker. Enyimba won 3-2 on penalties.

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CAF Confederation Cup

CAF Confederation Cup: Enyimba target victory after Solid Showing in Bamako

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Enyimba FC head coach Yemi Olarenwaju has set his sights on securing a crucial victory in Sunday’s second leg of the CAF Confederation Cup tie against Étoile Filante de Ouagadougou.

His confidence is built on the  goalless draw in the first leg in Bamako.

“The job is far from over, and we can’t afford to celebrate yet. The return leg in Uyo will be crucial,” Olarenwaju was quoted by the club’s website as saying.

“We’ll go back to the drawing board, work harder, and prepare for the challenge ahead.”

Olarenwaju praised his team’s tactical edge and discipline, which nullified the hosts’ attacking threats. “We had a clear game plan, and the players executed it perfectly. Our tactical discipline prevented Étoile Filante de Ouagadougou from creating any meaningful scoring opportunities.”

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The Enyimba FC boss acknowledged the tough opposition but remains confident in his team’s ability to secure a win at home.

“Étoile Filante de Ouagadougou is a formidable opponent, but we have the quality and determination to get the job done in Uyo.”

As we look forward to the return leg, we urge all Enyimba FC fans to come out in their numbers and support the team at the Uyo Stadium. Let’s make our home advantage count and cheer the People’s Elephant to victory!

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CAF Confederation Cup

Enyimba’s midfielder, Daga confident of Confederation Cup group stage ticket

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Enyimba’s midfielder,  Daniel Daga, has pledged to lead club to victory against Etoile Filante in the return leg of the CAF Confederation Cup second round on Sunday.

The People’s Elephant are looking to build on their impressive performance in the first leg, which ended in a goalless draw in Bamako, Mali. Despite creating several scoring opportunities, Enyimba were unable to find the back of the net.

However, Daga remains optimistic about their chances in the return leg having missed the first leg of the encounter due to a slight knock

“Our resolve is to win and advance to the group stages,” he stated confidently. “We understand that they are a difficult opponent, but we have just one task, which is to win, and that is exactly what we are going to do.”

A win for Enyimba FC would guarantee their spot in the group stages, a feat that would make them the only Nigerian team in the competition’s group phase.

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“We know the importance of this match, and we’re ready to give it our all,” Daga added. “We want to make Nigeria proud and show that we’re a force to be reckoned with in African football.”

Head coach, Yemi Olarenwaju, has been fine-tuning his tactics, and the team is eager to execute their game plan.

“The first leg result gives us an advantage, but we won’t take anything for granted,” Olarenwaju said. “We’ll push for victory and secure our spot in the group stages.”

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