CAF Confederation Cup
CAF Confederation Cup: Orapa coach hopeful in seemingly hopeless situation
BY PETER KANJERE, PANA
Botswana’s Orapa United coach Gadimang Tiiso has downplayed that his team is yet to score in the CAF Confederation Cup group stage going into their penultimate Group C encounter against USM Alger on Sunday.
In a pre-match press conference on Saturday, Tiiso said the seven goals they have conceded without scoring in four games do not reveal the whole story about Orapa’s debut showing in the competition.
“If you look at our performance from the first game, the team is doing well,” he said. “We lost but the performance was very good. The group is still open; we can qualify. We must take one game at a time going into the next game. We need to focus more and approach it with a winning mentality that even though we are at the bottom of the group, we also want to progress to the quarterfinals.”
The coach for the Botswana team insisted that they learned lessons from their 6-0 loss to the Algerians in the first leg and were ready to improve their performance on Sunday.
“This is a completely different game and a completely different approach. We also drew lessons which we can’t reveal. We have nothing to lose in this game tomorrow. We will still approach it with a winning mentality,” Tiiso added.
Going into Sunday’s game at Obed Itani Chilume Stadium in Francistown, Orapa anchor Group C with two points. The debutants lie a distant six points behind leaders USM Alger and three behind second and third positioned ASEC Mimosas and ASC Jaraaf from Ivory Coast and Senegal.
Orapa lost 6-0 to USM Alger, drew 0-0 with ASEC, chalked a similar result against ASC Jaraaf at home in Botswana then lost 1-0 to the Senegalese opponents in Dakar. Orapa will wind up their Group C assignments by facing ASEC Mimosas next Sunday.
-PANA
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
It may turn out to be the most fiercely contested Match Day 5 in the CAF Confederation Cup as Nigeria’s Enyimba face Al-Masry of Egypt.
Both sides face zero option as neither will want to drop a point going into the last match day of the Group D. Just a point separates the second-placed Al-Masry and the fourth-positioned Enyimba who share the same points, 4 with Mozambique’s Associação Black Bulls.
The Mozambique side is however ranked third on account of away goals scored in head-to-head matches. Black Bulls scored one against Enyimba who fired blank away, although both have a three-goal margin win in their respective home games.
A win by Enyimba will take the team to second position with seven points leaving Al-Masry with five. The projection is based on the likely win of Zamalek over visiting Mozambique’s Associação Black Bulls.
By that, Zamalek, with possible 10 point, will become the breakaway leaders of the group, leaving Enyimba to battle fiercely for the second Group D slot.
Such a scenario has made the Uyo match a potentially high-risk and possibly bitterly contested.
Al-Masry director, Mohamed Abdel-Karim is quoted by Egyptian publication, Ahram as expressing deep concerns.
He acknowledged the tough road ahead for his team in securing a quarterfinal berth, primarily as the outcome hinges on the last round of group-stage matches.
“Our players are mentally prepared and focused on attaining a positive outcome against Enyimba,” Abdel-Karim affirmed in anticipation of the upcoming game.
“The significance of this match against Enyimba is well understood by our players, given its pivotal role in our quest for the quarterfinals,” he stressed.
He highlighted the team’s aspirations, “We harbour great ambitions and will exert maximum effort to delight our supporters.”
File Photo: Al-Masry Midfielder Ahmed El Armouty in action during the match with Enyimba. Photo courtesy of Al-Masry Facebook page.
Follow the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
Egyptian side, Al-Masry will face a setback in Sunday’s CAF Confederation match with Enyimba in Uyo.
They will be without the services of talented winger Karim El-Eraky due to suspension resulting from accumulated yellow cards.
In November 2024, in the initial group stage encounter, Masry secured a convincing 2-0 victory over Enyimba in their home fixture.
Follow the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
CAF Confederation Cup
Another Libya-Nigeria episode unfolding as Egypt’s Al-Masry SC threatens to file a complaint against Enyimba
Nigeria’s Enyimba FC risks sanctions from the Confederation of African Football, CAF, if Al-Masry SC of Egypt successfully presses a case against the Nigerian side.
Trending on WhatsApp group of African sports stakeholders is a statement made by a board member of Al-Masry, Mohammed Mousa, whose team has a Confederation fixture with Enyimba on Sunday.
Mohamed Mousa, a member of the board of directors of the Port Said club and head of mission of the club’s first football team, reportedly spoke of the difficulties encountered by his team during their trip to Nigeria.
He explained that Al-Masry decided to file a complaint against those responsible for Enyimba to the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
Mousa said in press statements: “We encountered great difficulties upon our arrival in Nigeria and received a very poor welcome from Enyimba officials.”
He continued: “We took a domestic flight from Abuja to Uyo, and the management of the Nigerian club ignored our reception, and we received a big shock, with the lack of buses to transport us to the residence, which made us wait for a long time inside the airport until buses were provided to transport us.”
He added: “I would like to thank Ms. Samah Badawi, Deputy Ambassador of Egypt to Nigeria, who was keen to wait with the mission until all travel procedures from Abuja to Uyo were completed and who worked to overcome all obstacles that we faced. »
He continued: “The management of Enyimba has decided without justification to cancel the reservation of our training ground and we have not found an explanation for all the obstacles we are facing from the Nigerian side, before the next match. »
He concluded: “We have decided to file a complaint against the Nigerian at CAF and we will work to remove all obstacles facing the team before the next match. »
Similar situations were recorded in MatchDays 3 and 4 of the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying ties of Nigeria and Libya leading to extreme actions by the Libyans who were later sanctioned with match forfeiture.
Follow the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
Titanic Battle as Enyimba and Al Masry face zero option
Al Masry to miss star winger, El-Eraky in crunchy diel with Enyimba
CAF Confederation Cup: Orapa coach hopeful in seemingly hopeless situation
- Nigerian Football4 days ago
Triple nationality Eric Chelle who last led Mali to beat Nigeria is Super Eagles’ new manager
- TRANSFER MARKET4 days ago
Kelechi Iheanacho heading to Egypt
- TRANSFER MARKET3 days ago
BREAKING! Man Utd whole squad for sale
- Nigerian Football4 days ago
New man on the saddle, Chelle tasked to revive Nigeria’s World Cup hopes
- CHAN1 week ago
CHAN: Ogunmodede invites 26 players as Eagles commence camping in Ikenne-Remo
- CHAN1 week ago
Breaking! Goal scorer, Sodiq Ismail and clubmate, Fatokun out of Nigeria’s CHAN squad
- Olympics3 days ago
Amos Adamu breaks silence on Nigeria sports; says another barren outing looms at LA 2028
- MEDIA3 days ago
Nigeria’s broadcast icon, Danladi Bako gets National Institute for Sports fellowship