Category: African News

Our African football page passionately on all continental topics of all National and International football news, Identifying football heroes on our continent.

Al Ahly beat Mazembe to set a date with Esperance of Tunisia
by Alie Bittar @bittar32

Al Ahly beat Mazembe to set a date with Esperance of Tunisia

On Friday in Cairo, Egypt’s Al Ahly secured TotalEnergies CAF Champions League final spot with a 3-0 win over Mazembe.

As a result, they’ll face Esperance of Tunisia, who defeated Sundowns 2-0 on aggregate to set up this year’s final Al Ahly.

In the first leg of the match played in Lubumbashi, no team managed to score a goal. However, the return fixture in Cairo was full of drama.

In Cairo, Joel Beya’s goal for Mazembe was disallowed early in the second half before Abdelmonem’s powerful header off a corner broke the deadlock on 68 minutes.

Led by South African-born Percy Tau, the 11-time champions displayed tenacity, hunger, and quality to carry Egyptian football’s flag into next month’s final. 

Marcel Koller’s side responded to the threat of the visitors and showed the composure and quality that has made them African club football’s pre-eminent force over the past decade.

Mohamed Abdelmonem’s thumping header put them ahead in the 68th minute before late strikes from Wissam Abu Ali and Akram Tawfik completed the win as Al Ahly seeks to maintain its grip on African club football’s biggest prize.

Al Ahly secured a place in the final against Tunisian heavyweights Esperance after Akram Tawfik scored the third goal in the 12th minute of stoppage time. 

https://twitter.com/bittar32/status/1784105428286132226

Dreams coach Zito relishes chance against Zamalek for final spot
by Alie Bittar @bittar32

Dreams coach Zito relishes chance against Zamalek

Dreams FC coach Abdul Karim Zito has stated that his team will not underestimate Zamalek in the second leg of their CAF Confederation Cup semi-final match.

Zito’s team held the former champions to a goalless draw at Cairo International Stadium, despite the home team’s dominance.

The Ghanaian team showed great resilience and managed to prevent Zamalek from winning. As a result, they returned home as the happier side and are now looking forward to the second-leg encounter. 

The match is scheduled to take place at the Baba Yara Stadium on Sunday, April 28, 2024, and Zito, the coach, is well aware of the challenges that lie ahead.

“We’ve put the first leg aside – we know it will be very difficult as it looks very frightening, but it is not impossible,” Karim Zito said, as quoted by Akoma Sports. 

The experienced coach is confident of securing victory, even if the game has to be decided after regulation time.

“We are ready should the game travel to penalties, but we aim to end the game within 90 minutes,” he stated. 

Zamalek arrived in Kumasi on Thursday, April 25 to continue their preparations for the anticipated encounter. 

Dreams hopeful to reach first Continental final after draw in Cairo
by FSL News

Dreams hopeful to reach first Continental final after draw in Cairo

On April 28th, Dreams FC will host Zamalek in Kumasi for the second-leg semi-final of the CAF Confederation Cup, hoping to clinch their first-ever spot in the tournament’s semi-finals after a spirited performance against the Egyptian giants in Cairo.

The Dreams football team, who are participating in the competition for the first time, will try to defeat the Egyptian team in the next match, which will be held at the Baba Yara Stadium.

Karim Zito’s team has not lost any matches at home since the beginning of the competition.

Zamalek dominated the game in Cairo but failed to score due to Dreams’ strong defence. The White Knights had several chances to score, but their attacks lacked precision in the final third.

At the beginning of the match, Zamalek put pressure on Dreams with Shikabala, Mostafa Shalaby and Ahmed Hamdi all coming close to scoring before the midway point of the first half.

Despite their continued efforts, Dreams goalkeeper Solomon Agbasi was able to keep out shots from Shikabala and Travis Mutyaba.

Zamalek struggled to create clear-cut opportunities as they failed to convert their chances into goals, resulting in a goalless draw against the visitors.

Brazilian Sasse scores Esperance's winner against Mamelodi Sundowns
by Alie Bittar @bittar32

Brazilian Sasse scores Esperance’s winner against Sundowns

Esperance of Tunisia claimed a 1-0 victory over Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa in the first leg of their CAF Champions League semi-final match on Saturday. 

In the 41st minute, Yan Sasse, 26, from Brazil scored the only goal of the game. He converted a rebound after Sundowns goalkeeper Ronwen Williams parried his first attempt. Sasse’s compatriot, Rodrigo Rodrigues, played a significant role in the goal by providing an excellent through ball to Sasse.

The goal came soon after Sundowns had a goal ruled offside, Rodrigues had hit the woodwork, and teammate Houssem Tka had another shot cleared off the goalline. 

Sasse could have scored again in the second half, but a last-ditch tackle by Grant Kekana prevented him from doing so. 

Visiting Sundowns failed to equalize despite Mothobi Mvala’s shot, which was saved by Esperance’s goalkeeper. 

Esperance, bidding for their fifth Champions League title, held on to a narrow lead until the return leg.

Elsewhere, title-holders Al Ahly moved closer to their seventh final appearance in eight seasons by holding TP Mazembe to a goalless draw.

Ahly and Mazembe drew 0-0 in their match. Despite injuries to key players, Ahly achieved a satisfactory result. 

Mazembe drew their home quarter-final match but won the return match 2-1. Ahly will host Mazembe in Cairo, and Sundowns will face Esperance on Friday.

USM Alger set for RS Berkane CAF Confed first-leg cracker
by Alie Bittar @bittar32

USM Alger set for RS Berkane CAF Confed first-leg cracker

On Sunday, April 21, 2024, USM Alger and RS Berkane will compete against each other in the semi-final of the CAF Confederation Cup. The first-leg match will be held at the Stade du 5 Juillet in Algiers, which is the capital and largest city of Algeria.

Referee Abdel Aziz Mohamed Bouh from Mauritania will officiate the first leg match between Alger and Berkane.

Alger made it to this tournament stage by defeating Rivers United, the Nigerian club, 2-1 on aggregate in the quarterfinals. Having won the Confederation Cup last season, the Algerian team will be looking to defend their title successfully by winning it again this season.

On their part, Berkane qualified for the semi-finals by defeating Abu Salim of Libya 3-2 on aggregate in the quarterfinals. 

Having won the trophy in 2020 and 2022, the Moroccan side hopes to win it again this season and claim a joint record of three titles.

Alger needs goals from Abdoulaye Kanou. Berkane’s captain, Issoufou Dayo, could be key.