CAF Confederation Cup

CAF Confederation Cup: Day of Reckoning for Rivers United

Published

7 years ago

June 19, 2017

BY SAMMY WEJINYA

The CAF Confederation Cup enters its Match Day four as Nigeria’s Rivers United take on Uganda’s Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA). With every team in Group A winning its home match, nothing less is expected from Rivers United.

It is a make or break time for Rivers United. The section is extremely tough-looking with all four teams in the group, FUS Rabat (Morocco), Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA, Uganda), Club Africain (Tunisia) and Rivers United (Nigeria) peerless at home thus far.

This makes Tuesday’s game at the Yakubu Gowon Stadium Port Harcourt one that leaves little margin for error, for the Nigerian side especially, as any result other than an outright victory could mean curtains as far as their aspirations of reaching the quarter finals of the competition are concerned.

KCCA won the reverse fixture 2-1 at the Phillip Omondi Stadium (Lugogo), Kampala on June 3; a result that lifted them from bottom to second place on the log; such are the fine margins in this group!

Head coach of KCCA, Mike Hillary Mutebi acknowledges that things are evenly poised on a knife edge in the group and that goals difference could represent a tie-breaker eventually.

“We have not been effective so far as we should have won the (reverse fixture) 5-2. The result in Lugogo was not a true reflection of our dominance,” Mutebi told our official website, www.riversunitedfc.com.ng.

“The (issue) of goals difference is worrying so we have to try to outscore the opponent. In all our away games in the Confederation Cup, we have only failed to score against FUS Rabat and El-Masry; we always score away from home.

“Rivers United is a very good team but we (KCCA) are confident we can rub shoulders with them because we have tested the best,” he said.

Mutebi however frowned at what he called ‘time-wasting’ tactics employed by the Nigerian club in the first leg; sentiments echoed by his captain, Denis Okot Oola.

Okot however agreed with his coach that the ‘Pride of Rivers’ represents a solid proposition that could cause them more than a few problems on Tuesday.

“Rivers United have experienced players. (Bolaji Sakin) is huge and experienced and can outrun defenders. I expect them to play differently in Nigeria,” Okot said.

CAF Confederation Cup

CAF draw brings Nigeria again against Benin Republic

Published

2 weeks ago

July 11, 2024

Kunle Solaja

El Kanemi Warriors to face Dadje of Benin Republic

After Nigeria and Benin have been drawn together together in the 2026 World Cup qualifying as well as that of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, another CAF draw has pitched the two teams together.

El-Kanemi will face Dadje of Benin Republic in the opening round of the CAF Confederation Cup. Nigeria’s second team, Enyimba FC are exempted from the first round.

The eight time Nigerian champions will face the winner of Hafia versus Rahimo of Burkina Faso.

CAF Confederation Cup

Enyimba exempted from Preliminary round as El-Kanemi fall in Pot 1 of Confederation Cup draw

Published

2 weeks ago

July 10, 2024

Kunle Solaja

Enyimba FC have drawn bye in the preliminary stage of the CAF Confederation Cup which draw will hold in Cairo on Thursday. The Nigerian team is among the 12 highest ranked teams in the competition.

Nigeria’s other representative are in Pot 1 along with 12 other clubs. The CAF Confederation Cup have 52 clubs representing 41 countries.

After the 12 exempted clubs, the remaining 40 clubs shall play in the preliminary round which consist of three ranked clubs and 37 non-ranked clubs according to the official clubs ranking.

Three pots of the 37 non-ranked teams are created considering their geographical proximity. The exempted teams and the ranked teams are distributed geographically.

CAF Confederation Cup

EXCLUSIVE! Abia Warriors’ Federation Cup loss saves Enyimba from CAF Confederation Cup disqualification

Published

4 weeks ago

June 30, 2024

Kunle Solaja

Enyimba saved by Abia Warriors loss at the President Federation Cup

BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

Had Abia Warriors won the President Federation Cup in tie with El-Kanemi Warriors on Saturday, Enyimba FC would have been disqualified from the CAF Confederation Cup.

Entry for the registration for both Confederation Cup and the CAF Champions League close this Sunday.

Sources at the Confederation of African Football (CAF) informed Sports Village Square that the eligibility code for any of the inter-clubs competitions, does not allow two clubs owned fully or partially by the same person or body to feature in the same competition.

Both Enyimba FC and Abia Warriors are known to be owned and funded by the Abia State Government.

Had Abia Warriors prevailed over El-Kanemi, they too, like Enyimba would have qualified for the Confederation Cup.

Like in UEFA clubs competitions, CAF would not have allowed teams owned fully or partially by the same body to feature in the same competition. In this case, the CAF Confederation Cup.

It would be a different issue, if one of the two were to be competing in the Champions League and the other in the Confederation Cup.

This is stated in Section L.03 of Article 55 of the CAF Men’s Licensing Regulations (2022 edition).

In accordance with the Regulations of CAF Confederation Cup which give precedence to the national cup winner over the third placed teams of the league in case of countries that qualified to enter two teams, the sacrificial lamb would have been Enyimba, whose position would have been taken by the next available team, Shooting Stars who placed fourth on the log.

It was partly in accordance to the Section IV of the CAF Confederation Cup Regulations (ENGAGEMENTS) that enabled the fourth placed Kwara United engaged in the 2022 edition as the entry closed while the Nigerian national cup was still at the quarter-final stage.