CAF Confederation Cup
Confederation Cup round-up: Simba triumph over Sfaxien – Black Bulls, Zamalek win
Simba snatched a late 2-1 victory against CS Sfaxien in Dar es Salaam, while Black Bulls Maputo stunned Enyimba with a dominant 3-0 win in Mozambique as the CAF Confederation Cup group stage reached its halfway point on Sunday.
The results leave several groups finely poised, with everything to play for in the remaining fixtures as African clubs continue their quest for continental glory:
Bravos do Maquis 3-2 Constantine
Bravos do Maquis edged CS Constantine 3-2 in a thrilling Group A encounter at Estádio 11 de Novembro. The Angolan side raced to a 2-0 lead by half-time through a Jó Paciência penalty and Francis’ long-range effort. Constantine mounted a spirited comeback as Dadi Mouaki and Chahine Belaouel struck to level the scores. However, substitute Célio netted a dramatic winner in the 94th minute to hand Maquis their second win and move level with Constantine and Simba on six points.
Zamalek 1-0 Al Masry
Zamalek triumphed 1-0 in a tightly contested Egyptian derby against Al Masry at Borg El Arab Stadium. Zizo’s stunning strike from outside the box in the 63rd minute proved the difference. Despite Masry’s late pressure, Zamalek’s defence held firm to seal the win, propelling them to the top of Group D with seven points.
Simba 2-1 CS Sfaxien
Simba edged CS Sfaxien 2-1 in a thrilling Group A encounter at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium. The visitors struck first through Hazem Haj Hassen, but Simba responded with a Kibu Denis header in the 7th minute. The Tanzanian side dominated the second half, and Denis completed his brace in the dying moments to seal the victory. Simba now climb to second place in Group A.
Black Bulls 3-0 Enyimba
Black Bulls Maputo stunned Nigerian giants Enyimba with a dominant 3-0 win in Group D. Rume Akporoh’s first-half header set the tone before second-half strikes from Fidel Sousa and Ayuba Francis secured the result. Enyimba struggled to respond, leaving them bottom of the group.
Lunda Sul 0-1 Stellenbosch
South African club Stellenbosch snatched a narrow 1-0 away win over CD Lunda Sul. Devin Titus’ late header in the 89th minute proved decisive as the South Africans moved into third place in Group B. Lunda Sul missed crucial chances in a tight encounter.
Orapa United 0-0 Jaraaf
Orapa United and Jaraaf played to a goalless draw in Group C. Both sides created opportunities, but poor finishing and resolute goalkeeping saw the points shared. The result keeps both teams struggling in the group standings.
-CAF
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CAF Confederation Cup
CAF adjudges Morocco’s Youssef Mehri’s goal as the fastest in football history
Moroccan club, Renaissance de Berkane, beat their Algerian counterparts, CS Constantine, 4-0 in the first leg of the CAF Confederation Cup semi-finals at the weekend.
The game got off to a dream start for the Moroccan club as it took Youssef Mehri less than a minute to open the scoring in the big win against the Algerians.
Officially, the goal is recorded to have been scored after 13 seconds.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), CAF remarks: “Youssef Mehri goes straight into the history books. The RS Berkane striker scores the fastest goal ever scored in the CAF Cup.”
A deeper search by Sports Village Square indicates that a Nigerian player, Paul Onuachu, had previously scored a faster goal, but not in a CAF Cup duel.
The basketball player-like footballer scored his first international goal in a 1-0 defeat of Egypt on 26 March 2019.
The goal inflicted Nigeria’s first defeat on Egypt in 29 years. But more significant was the timing of the goal. Onuachu, within eight seconds of kick-off, undoubtedly entered the record books as the second fastest goal in international football records after that of Germany’s Lukas Podolsk, who scored after six seconds in a friendly against Ecuador in 2013.
Fans had hardly settled down at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba for the Nigeria versus Egypt match when Onuachu released a thunderous shot that turned out to be the match’s decider.
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The Renaissance Sportive de Berkane delegation will travel to Algeria this Friday to face CS Constantine in the CAF Cup. Tension may be building up for the potentially explosive confrontation that could have a build-up from last year’s fixtures of the Moroccan club and another Algerian outfit, USM Algiers, in the CAF Confederation Cup.
A Moroccan news outlet, Sport.le360, reports that a Tunisian airline will operate the direct flight between Oujda-Angad Airport, which is located about 12 kilometres north of Oujda and about 600 kilometres northeast of Casablanca, near the Algerian border and Constantine Mohamed Boudiaf International Airport.
Last year, political differences between Morocco and Algeria scuttled similar semi-final clashes between clubs of both countries.
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The Court of Arbitration for Sport on Wednesday ruled in favour of the Algerian football federation in a row over a map of Morocco on shirts worn by Renaissance Berkane in the 2024 CAF Confederation Cup.
Algerian club USM Alger were kicked out of last year’s competition after both legs of their semi-final against Berkane were cancelled because of a diplomatic dispute.
Neither match took place as USMA and the Algerian authorities objected to a map of Morocco on the Berkane shirts which included Western Sahara.
Algeria cut diplomatic ties with North African neighbours Morocco in 2021, partly over the Western Sahara issue.
The former Spanish colony is largely controlled by Morocco but claimed by the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, which seeks the territory’s independence.
The Confederation of African Football awarded Berkane a 3-0 victory for both legs of the semi-final.
CAF at the time responded to an appeal by the Algerian FA by ruling in favour of Berkane, saying the club had been wearing the same jerseys since the start of the tournament.
But the Algerian FA took the case to sport’s highest court in Switzerland, which determined that the shirts in question were “contrary to CAF regulations, as they display a territorial map that is of a political nature.”
“The image of a map of Morocco including Western Sahara on the shirts of RS Berkane depicts a message, a demonstration or propaganda of a political nature as it represents the assertion of a territorial dispute that is contested and still unresolved as of today,” CAS said in a statement.
“By the laws of the game of the International Football Association Board, it is prohibited to convey any content of a political nature on all equipment, including shirts.”
CAS added that the initial decision by CAF to “maintain the approval of the shirts is annulled”, but the court said that it would have no effect on the results of the tournament.
Egypt’s Zamalek beat Berkane on away goals in the final.
-AFP
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