CAF Champions League

BATTLE FOR SUPREMACY BY TWO NORTH AFRICAN GIANTS

Published

6 years ago

November 1, 2018

BY KUNLE SOLAJA.nn nnThis year’s CAF Champions League final presents a unique setting, as it is a repeat of 2012 edition. Egypt’s Al Ahly take on Tunisia’s Esperance in the first leg match on Friday.nn nnIt is a battle of two of Africa’s oldest club-sides. Al Ahly was founded in 1907 while Esperance had its seeds sowed in 1919.nn nnAl Ahly, easily the most successful African club as well as the most fanatically supported won the 2012 keenly contested final battles.nn nnWill they do it again this year? The confrontations of both teams litter the record books of African football. Across all African clubs’ competitions in the past 28 years, both teams have met 18 times with victories tilting more to Al Ahly.nn nnEven this year, they met twice in the group stage. Esperance held Al Ahly to a scoreless draw in Alexandria only to succumb to a lone goal defeat at home in Rades. Thanks to the 32^nd minute strike by Al Ahly’s Walid Azaro.nn nnAL AHLY –ESPERANCE HEAD-TO-HEADnn nn1990 CAF Champions League – 1/8th finalsnnTunis Esperance 0-0 AhlynnCairo Ahly 0-0* Esperancenn*Esperance won 4-2 on penalty shootoutnn nn2001 CAF Champions League – Semifinalnn04.11.2001 Cairo Ahly 0-0 Esperancenn17.11.2001 Tunis Esperance 1-1 Ahly (Edilton Perreira 2’/ Sayed Abdel Hafeez 83′)nn nn2007 CAF Champions League – Group stagenn20.07.2007 Cairo Ahly 3-0 Esperance (Mohamed Abu Treika 12′, Flavio Amado 77′, Ossama Hosny 85′)nn04.08.2007 Rades Esperance 1-0 Ahly (Salama Kasdaoui 38′)nn nn2010 CAF Champions League – Semifinalnn03.10.2010 Cairo Ahly 2-1 Esperance (Mohamed Fadl 38′, Ahmed Fathy 68′ / Oussama Darragi 72′)nn17.10.2010 Rades Esperance 1-0 Ahly (Michael Eneramo 1′)nn nn2011 CAF Champions League – Group stagenn30.07.2011 Rades Esperance 1-0 Ahly (Yannick N’Djeng 14′)nn16.09.2011 Cairo Ahly 1-1 Esperance (Mohamed Abu Treika 54′ / Yaya Banana 17′)nn nn2012 CAF Champions League – Finalnn04.11.2012 Alexandria Ahly 1-1 Esperance (Elsayed Hamdy 88′ / Walid Hichri 49′)nn17.11.2012 Rades Esperance 1-2 Ahly (Yannick N’Djeng 85′ / Mohamed Nagy “Geddo” 43′, Waleed Suleiman 63′)nn nn2015 CAF Confederation Cup – Group stagenn28.06.2015 Suez Ahly 3-0 Esperance (Abdullah Elsaid 20′, Abdullah Elsaid 58′, Moamen Zakaria 90′)nn22.08.2015 Rades Esperance 0-1 Ahly (John Antwi 5′)nn nn2017 CAF Champions League – Quarterfinalnn16.09.2017 Alexandria Ahly 2-2 Esperance (Abdullah Elsaid 11′, Walid Azaro 67′ / Taha Yassine Khenissi 21′, Ghilane Chaalali 48′)nn23.09.2017 Cairo Esperance 1-2 Ahly (Taha Yassine Khenissi 40′ / Ali Maaloul 50′, Junior Ajayi 62′)nn nn2018 CAF Champions League – Group stagenn04.05.2018 Alexandria Ahly 0-0 Esperancenn17.08.2018 Rades Esperance 0-1 Ahly (Walid Azaro 32′)nn nn nn

CAF Champions League

Al Ahly to face Esperance in African Champions League final

Published

1 week ago

April 27, 2024

Kunle Solaja

Ahly, Wydad set for Mundial de Clubes FIFA debut – Sundowns, Esperance eyeing other slots

Defending champions Al Ahly of Egypt will take on perennial rivals Esperance of Tunisia in this year’s African Champions League final after winning their semi-finals on Friday.

Al Ahly, who have won five of the last seven editions and a record 11 in total, overcame TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo in Cairo and Esperance pulled off a surprise 1-0 win over South African champions Mamelodi Sundowns in Pretoria.

Al Ahly won 3-0 after a goalless draw in the first leg in Lubumbashi for a comfortable aggregate triumph while Esperance’s 20-year-old defender Raed Bouchniba hammered home a clinical shot in the 57th minute to earn the Tunisians a 1-0 away win and 2-0 aggregate victory.

The match was delayed by 70 minutes after a lightning strike in South Africa’s capital knocked out some of the floodlights amid a heavy thunderstorm.

Sundowns won the new African Football League this season and were one of the favourites for the Champions League but fell short of the final for an eighth season in a row.

Esperance’s 20-year-old goalkeeper Amanallah Memmich produced fine saves as the South African forwards fluffed their lines and the win also ensured a place for Esperance in next year’s Club World Cup in the U.S.

Al Ahly took until the 68th minute to break the deadlock against Mazembe when defender Mohamed Abdel-Moneim scored.

Wessam Abou Ali added a second in the 83rd minute, stretching out his leg to apply a clever finish and Akram Tawfiq confirmed their superiority with a stoppage-time third.

Esperance host the first leg of the final on May 18 with the return in Cairo seven days later.

Esperance won the last of their four Champions League titles in 2019 and have been runners-up four times.

CAF Champions League

CAF Champions League narrows to four teams

Published

4 weeks ago

April 7, 2024

Kunle Solaja

CAF Champions League Quarter-Finals journey mapped out

From the original 54 teams from 42 countries that began the race last year, the CAF Champions League has now narrowed to four teams as a whopping 50 have been eliminated.

The four elite clubs in the semi-finals are Al Ahly of Egypt, Esperance Sportive de Tunis of Tunisia, South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns and TP Mazembe of DR Congo.

Title holders and record champions Al Ahly are still on track to defend their title as they beat Simba SC in Cairo to secure their place while four-time winners Esperance Sportive de Tunis were made to labour hard against Asec Mimosas of Cote d’Ivoire.

The reigning African Football League (“AFL”) Champions and 2025/16 winners Mamelodi Sundowns were pushed to the end by Tanzania’s Young Africans in South Africa.

Five-time winners TP Mazembe of DR Congo pulled one of the best performances this weekend with a 2-1 away win over Atletico Petroleos of Luanda after the first leg ended goalless.

The semis will be played on home and away basis on 19-20 April 2024 (first leg) with the Second Leg scheduled for 26-27 April 2024.

In the first semi-final, Al Ahly (Egypt) will play TP Mazembe (DR Congo) in what promises to be a thrilling encounter. Esperance Sportive de Tunis will play Mamelodi Sundowns in the second semi-final.

CAF will announce the dates and kick-off dates in due course.

CAF Champions League

Ahly Edge Closer To CL Semifinals With Narrow Victory Over Simba –

Published

1 month ago

March 30, 2024

Kunle Solaja

Ahly Edge Closer To CL Semifinals With Narrow Victory Over Simba -

Egyptian giants Ahly took a significant stride towards securing a spot in the CAF Champions League semifinals following their hard-fought 1-0 win against Tanzania’s Simba on Friday, thanks to an early goal by midfielder Ahmed “Koka” Nabil.

Right from the start, the hosts launched relentless attacks, aiming to find an early breakthrough. However, Ahly’s resolute and well-organized defense thwarted all of their attempts.

Simba’s first notable chance came when midfielder Sadio Kanouté headed a cross from Clatous Chama following a corner, but his effort sailed over the bar from close range.

Just four minutes into the game, Ahly defender Mohamed Hany found himself in possession on the right side of Simba’s field. He cut inside and delivered a cross that was mishandled by the defense, leading to a powerful shot from Koka. The ball ricocheted off the head of the Simba goalkeeper, struck the post, and ultimately found the back of the net.

Despite Simba’s control of the match, as they pushed forward in search of an equalizer, Ahly’s solid defense and the heroics of goalkeeper Mostafa Shobier denied them any scoring opportunities. Ahly relied on swift counterattacks but their attempts to extend their lead fell short.

Shobier produced a magnificent save in the 39th minute, blocking Che Malone’s right-footed shot from the center of the box. He came to the rescue again just before halftime, denying Sadio Kanouté’s right-footed shot from the right side of the box and turning it into a corner.

In injury time, Shobier made another brilliant save, stopping Saïdi Ntibazonkiza’s close-range effort, which rebounded to Shomari Kapombe, who shot the ball high over the bar.

In the second half, Simba continued to dominate proceedings but failed to find the equalizing goal despite their persistent efforts.

Ahly coach Marcel Koller made a tactical double substitution in the 67th minute, introducing Reda Slim for Hussein El-Shahat and Taher Mohamed Taher in place of Percy Tau.

The move injected new energy into Ahly’s attack, with the Moroccan talisman creating two opportunities for the Red Devils.

Koller later made another double substitution, bringing on Kahraba for Modeste and Afsha for Attia.

In injury time, Kahraba had a chance to extend Ahly’s lead when he received a long ball from Afsha, but he struggled to control it. A minute later, Kahraba received a cross from Slim and entered the box, but once again his finishing touch eluded him.

With this narrow victory, Ahly now hold the advantage and move closer to securing a spot in the semifinals, with the second leg taking place in Cairo on Friday.

-Ahram