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CAF Confederation Cup

Confederation Cup path to Uyo is finalised today

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The second leg semifinals for the CAF Confederation Cup will take place on Sunday and the aggregate winners will book a ticket for the great final in Uyo, Nigeria.

TP Mazembe and Orlando Pirates secured first leg wins a week earlier, but Berkane and Al Ahli Tripoli have not said their last word.

Renaissance Berkane v TP Mazembe, Stade Municipal de Berkane, 19h00 GMT

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Once more, Berkane suffered a bad result last week in Lubumbashi. Despite a solid match, the Moroccans lost to Mazembe late goal. An away- defeat that Florent Ibenge’s men can regret. Playing home on Sunday, Berkane will have to be realistic. They absolutely need a victory to move to the final but first, they will need to equalize on the aggregate score.

After their title in 2020, Berkane want to repeat the feat by winning CAF Confederation Cup trophy again. They will need to attack quickly against Mazembe. Almost non-existent during the first leg, forwards Chadrack Muzungu or El Bahri will be able to benefit from the support of their public.

Meanwhile, the scenario seems perfect for the Ravens. With their 1-0 victory in the first leg, they have plenty to see coming. Leave the game to Berkane who must score and proceed with counterattacks, the different strategies must be running through the head of coach Franck Dumas. But unlike Berkane, Mazembe travel quite well on the continent. With all their experience in interclub competitions, the Congolese know how to obtain results far from their base.

Orlando Pirates v Al Ahli Tripoli, Orlando Stadium, Johannesburg, 16h00 GMT

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The work seems to have been done during the first. But in football, you should never take a result for granted when the match is still on. Orlando Pirates achieved the best operation by winning 2-0 last week. Even if the predictions seem now in favor of the Buccaneers, one should not bury the Liyan side too soon.

Ghanaian goalkeeper Richard Ofori is one of the greatest assets of the Pirates’ weapons. His statistics are clear with 6 games, 5 clean sheets and only one goal conceded from the penalty spot. His compatriot Kwame Prepah brings many difficulties to the opponents. The South Africans are close to another interclub final after reaching 2017 Champions League final.

Will Al Ahli Tripoli give up without a real fight? The Libyan side have had a great competition so far. But on the way, the Tripoli men have lacked resources, challenged by the Pirates who quickly scored two goals. They will now have to find solutions against a team that is difficult to move at home. But Al Ahli Tripoli have shown that they can weaken the best teams this season.

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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