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CAF Confederation Cup

Points of interest ahead of Remo Stars clash with AS FAR

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BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

Debutants, Remo Stars of Ikenne, Nigeria host the 2005 winners of the CAF Confederation Cup this Sunday at the Remo Stars Stadium. Last Sunday, the Nigerian side forced a soul-lifting 1-1 draw, a rare scoreline for Nigerian clubs in North Africa.

As usual, Sports Village Square takes an in-depth look at the match and comes out with the following points of interest.

  • As the CAF Confederation Cup enters its 20th edition, Remo Stars are the 23rd Nigerian club to feature in the competition after the debut by Lobi Stars and Enugu Rangers when the competition began in 2004 following the merger of the then CAF Cup and African Winners Cup
  • The Moroccan side, Association’s Sports of Forces Armed Royal (AS FAR) is far older than Remo Stars. The military outfit was founded 64 years ago on 1 September 1958.
  • When Adams Olamilekan Alade scored from a flick header in the 49th minute las Sunday in Rabat, he became the first Remo Stars player to score in a competitive international match.
  • This match is the biggest encounter to be played by Remo Stars. It is also the first international match to be played in Ikenne.
  • The match will be the first CAF inter-clubs duel in Ogun State since the 1 November 1987 Abiola Babes versus Tunis’s Esperance  match in Abeokuta and that of 15 November 2003 when Julius Berger beat Tunisia’s Étoile Sportive du Sahel in Abeokuta.
  • Remo Stars will be on vengeance mission for most big clubs from Nigeria who have been eliminated from continental championship by AS FAR of Morocco. Of the five Nigerian clubs that have had confrontations with AS FAR, only the former Iwuanyanwu Nationale (now Heartland) ever prevailed. That was in the semi-finals of the old-styled Champions League edition of 1988 when the Nigerian side won 5-3 on penalties after a 4-4 aggregate scores.

Also in the 2009 Champions League, Iwuanyanwu Nationale ousted the Moroccans after winning 3-1 at home and forcing a 1-1 draw in Rabat in the second round of the competition.

Before then, AS FAR eliminated Stationery Stores at the quarter-finals of the 1968 edition. The game went through three legs

Stores won the first leg 1-0 in Lagos but lost the return match in Rabat 2-1. Away goal rule was not in operation at the time.

A third match was played in Dakar Senegal  by mutual agreement. After the match finished 2–2 when extra time expired, AS FAR  won by drawing of lots.

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The next Nigerian sides to face AS FAR were the Wikki Tourists in the 1999 edition of the now discontinued African Winners’ Cup. At the quarter final stage, Wikki Tourists crashed out 3-0 on aggregate.

AS FAR again faced Dolphin of Port Harcourt and Enugu Rangers at the 2005 Confederation Cup. The Moroccans ousted Rangers on away goal rule at the play-off stage. The encounters ended 2-2.

In the final, Dolphins lost 3-1 on aggregate. It is those deplorable records that Remo Stars will be aiming to erase as they confront the Moroccan military outfit.

  • Inscribed on the crest of Remo Stars is the figure 33. It symbolizes the number of towns that make up Remo division in Ogun State.

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

Good start for Confederation Cup defending champions, Zamalek

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Zamalek commenced their CAF Confederation Cup journey with a 1-0 win over Kenya’s Police in the initial leg of the second preliminary round held in Nairobi this Saturday.

Veteran winger Abdallah El-Saied secured the win for the Whites with a precise strike from outside the box just a minute before halftime.

The Cairo giants, winners of the 2023-2024 CAF Confederation Cup title, started the match with relentless pressure on the hosts to clinch victory in the first leg and alleviate pressure before the upcoming return fixture in Cairo next Friday.

“The most important thing for us was to win and achieve our target,” Zamalek coach Gomes said after the game. 

Hosts Police FC of Kenya could not breach Zamalek’s resolute defense in search of an equalizer.

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Despite notable summer acquisitions, Zamalek’s coach Jose Gomes opted for a standard lineup, integrating young talents in lieu of seasoned players.

“We are now stronger than the previous season, thanks to spending more time with the team and preparing to play in the tournaments that we will participate in,” the Portuguese coach added.

Conversely, Kenya’s Police FC squandered a clear scoring opportunity against Zamalek, missing a crucial chance fifteen minutes before the final whistle, dashing hopes of leveling the score.

Kenya’s Police FC earned their place in this round following a hard-fought 1-0 aggregate victory over Ethiopia Coffee SC.

-Ahram

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CAF Confederation Cup

Enyimba continues unbeaten run against Burkina Faso clubs

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Nigeria’s Enyimba played a thrilling 0-0 draw with Burkina Faso’s Etoile Filante in the first leg of the CAF Confederation Cup  second round tie in Bamako on Friday.

There have been three previous confrontation with Burkina Faso teams and this Friday encounter was the second time that Enyimba had had to face Etoile Filante.

According to facts supplied by Opta Nigeria, Etoile Filante were Enyimba’s first ever opponent on the continent 22 years ago in March 2002. Ever since, Enyimba have played 157 times on the continent; the highest by any Nigerian club.

  Enyimba carry their advantage to the return leg to be played on 22 September.

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CAF Confederation Cup

Enyimba drawn against Etoile de Filante in Confederation Cup

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Nigeria’s sole survivors in the CAF Confederation Cup,Enyimba will face Burkina Faso sides, Etoile de Filante in the second round of the competition.

 Enyimba drew bye in the preliminary round while the Burkina Faso team reached the second round after eliminating Hafia of Guinea.

Enyimba, second runners-up in the Nigerian League will be attempting to win the Confederation Cup for the first time for Nigeria as they did in the Champions League 21 years ago.

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