Tanzania’s Young Africans and Algeria’s USMA are both looking to make history.
Who will add their name in golden letters to the list of winners of this fantastic tournament? The answer will be known at the end of the two Final legs (home and away).
First leg: Young Africans vs USMA, Sunday 28 May 2023 at Dar Es Salaam National Stadium at 13h00 GMT (16h00 local time)
Second leg: USMA vs Young Africans, Saturday 03 June 2023 at Stade du 5 juillet 1962 at 19h00 GMT (20h00 local time)
This follows a successful Club Licensing Seminar hosted by CAF in Egypt, Cairo a fortnight ago that saw Member Associations, Leagues, FIFA and sister Confederations meet to discuss the roadmap for the licensing system in Africa.
For the last few years, Club Licensing in Africa has achieved impressive milestones that have resulted in the improvement of club football in the continent.
Each year, CAF, working with Member Associations and the Leagues, embarks on a licensing process that focuses on enhancing the club football product.
The club licensing process for CAF club competitions is regulated through the different CAF codes and competition regulations, which state that all clubs (Licence Applicants) intending to participate in the CAF Interclubs competitions, must undergo the club licensing process with their respective Member Association (Licensor) and be granted a license by the competent decision-making bodies.
The granting of a licence to the clubs endorses that each club has met the requirements set in the CAF Club Licensing regulations.
The CAF Member Association is the Licensor and assesses each club according to five criteria: Sporting, Infrastructure, Personnel and Administrative, Legal, and Financial. For the current cycle, the deadline date for submission of all the licensing decisions and documents was 30 June 2022.
A total of 58 clubs from 46 CAF member associations were licensed for the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League 2022-23 edition.
Muhammad Sidat, CAF Head of Professional Football said: “In this cycle, the member associations have again complied with the deadlines and submission of all the necessary documentation and evidence related to the club licensing process for the CAF Interclubs 2022-23. The “no overdue payables criteria” was the one that clubs had some challenges to meet, but at the end, all disputes within the monitoring period with final and binding decisions were settled. We are now looking forward for the next season where the licensing process will be done electronically through the CAF Club Licensing Online Platform (CLOP).”
For the TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup 2022-23 edition a total of 50 clubs were granted a license at the level of their respective Member Association and will take part in the competition.
Security Systems from Botswana decided to withdraw from the competition.
The first-leg of the matches of the 1st preliminary round will be played from September 9 to 11 with the return matches scheduled to be played a week later. The aggregate winners will progress to the second round. The matches of the second round of the qualifiers will take place at the start of October.
CAF Communication
Gor Mahia’s new signing Tito Okello says he wants to help team perform well in continental assignments.
Despite the East Africa side being a regular fixture in the Caf Champions League, they have never gone past the initial preliminary rounds.
The best they have done is reach the quarterfinals of the second tier competition, Caf Confederations Cup, two seasons ago.
“I know at Gor Mahia winning the league title is expected, not hoped for,” the Ugandan told the club’s official portal.
“So, once you get the privilege of playing here you aim to excite the fans. And to be honest having followed their recent performance I think the only thing that would excite them now is if we played well at the continental arena.”
Having played for Vipers SC in the competition, the striker knows what to expect.
“I have experienced the beauty of playing at the continental level. You feel special, you feel different, you win home matches, your fans are happy and you feel invincible,” Okello explains.
“I know there are other local expectations like winning the Mashemeji Derby but I also know this is Gor Mahia and those no longer make the fans happy. They want the club to do well in Africa and that is what we as players should have as our first priority.”
Gor Mahia head coach Steven Polack is hopeful of getting a win on Sunday against DC Motema Pembe.
The two teams settled for a 1-1 draw in the first leg of the Caf Confederation Cup playoffs in Nairobi and the hosts will need a goalless draw to advance.
The Kenyan Premier League champions have to win or record a higher scoring draw to make it to the group stages.
The tactician believes it is possible to get a win despite the odds being against them.
“It is a tough game but we are prepared to go and give our best to ensure we win the game,” the tactician told Sports Africa.
“We always create chances and our conversion rate has been good; it is a matter of being clinical in front of the goal and I am happy my strikers are hard workers. I have asked them to tray and take the chances created, and I believe they will not disappoint.”
On the absence of Charles Muguna, the coach believes there are players who can step up and fill the void.
“[Momanyi] is a good player, too bad we will not have him. However, we have players who can fill the void and I am confident they will deliver,” Polack concluded.
The East African side are aiming at qualifying for the group stages for the third time in a row.
Gor Mahia treasurer Sally Bollo has come to the defence of the club management and instead accused players of employing diversionary tactics ahead of the crucial CAF Confederation Cup return leg match with Berkane FC on Sunday.
Gor Mahia’s trip to Morocco has been a long and treacherous one, full of drama, blame game and counter accusations.
Until Saturday evening, K’Ogalo’s full delegation had not arrived in Morocco, less than 24 hours to the kick-off with the latest development being ugly scenes of players sleeping on the floor at the Doha Airport as they wait for a connection flight to Morocco.
Drama started on Thursday when Gor Mahia players were turned away at the JKIA after they showed up without boarding passes.
They eventually left the county on Friday midnight in two batches.
“On Friday when players missed the plane, they slept at Laico Regency. Now that they are on transit they must remain at the airport. They should also post the pictures of where they spent the night on Friday,” said Bollo.
Questions have emerged how the players pictured in the airport drama, like Francis Kahata and Philemon Otieno, resorted to sleep on the cold floor instead of using the empty seats around them.
The second batch who will be tasked with the sole responsibility of turning around the first leg’s shoddy performance is the one that was holed up in Qatar for the better part of Saturday.
Zamalek hold a vital away draw against Morocco’s Hassania Agadir in the first leg of the Confederations Cup quarterfinal.
The Whites managed to end the game with a goalless draw after a spectacular performance from the goalkeeper, Mahmoud Gennesh.
The home side maintained pressure from the beginning aiming to take the lead early. They came very close to opening the lead in the 5th minute after a wonderful cross from Yousef El Fehly found the Palestinian striker, Tamer Seyam, who strangely hit the ball wide above the post.
Seyam came back again with another threat in the 29th minute after hitting a powerful shot from outside the box, hitting Gennesh’s post.
The whites threatened Agadir’s goal for the first time at the end of the first half after Khaled Boutayeb converted a corner kick with a powerful header, however, it went wide over the post.
Things stayed the same in the second half, as the home side maintained their constant pressure to find the back of the net. They came very close again in the 77th minute from Seyam who found the ball in front of the net from a crossed header; however, he hit the post again.
Zamalek’s final threat in the game came from Youssef Obama after receiving a wonderful pass from Mohamed Ibrahim to go one on one with the goalkeeper, however, his shot was deflected by the goalkeeper’s chest.
The draw gives the whites a huge advantage before the second leg that will take place on Sunday, April 15th at 21:00 CLT.
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Etoile du Sahel beat Al-Hilal Omdurman 3-1 at Stade Olympique de Sousse on Sunday evening.
Victory gives the two-time champions some breathing space heading into the Caf Confederations Cup quarter-final second-leg against the same opponents in Sudan next weekend.
Zied Boughattas fired the hosts in front on the half-hour mark before Yassine Chikhaoui netted his first of two goals from the penalty spot four minutes later.
The Blue Wave scored a vital away goal in the 59th minute through Athar El Tahir to make for a nervy finish.
Chikhaoui restored the hosts two-goal lead advantage in the 81st minute, completing his brace from the spot to lead the Tunisian’s to victory.
Etoile du Sahel (2) 3 (Boughattas 30′ Chikhaoui 34′ (P) 81′ (P))
Al-Hilal (0) 1 (El Tahir 59′)
Team
Etoile du Sahel: Bediri; Jemal (Konate 27′), Boughattas, Ben Aziza, Chikhaoui (Mathnani 85′), Aouadhi, Msakni, Ben Amor (Ben Larbi 58′), Raddaoui, Hannachi, Haj Hassen.
Al-Hilal: Salim; A. Abdalla, Ibrahim, Boya, Diarra, El Tahir, Behaldeen (Ariwachukwu 45+2′), Eldin Ali, N. Abdalla, Mbombo, Bakhet Hamid (Eldai 75′).
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Tunisia’s CS Sfaxien scored a crucial away goal after going down 2-1 to Zambia’s Nkana in the first-leg of their CAF Confederations Cup quarter-final match at the Nkana Stadium on Sunday.
The home side controlled possession and dictated the flow of play in the opening half, but were poor in the final third and often squandered their possession with bad passing or woeful shooting in front of goal.
Nonetheless, the Zambian side pushed forward and managed to find the opening goal with their only shot on target thanks to a strike from Kelvin Kampamba.
Sfaxien, on the other hand, provided very little in the way of attack and were fortunate to get to half time only trailing by a goal.
Seven minutes after the break, Nkana managed to double their lead when Freddy Tshimenga found the back of the net.
The Zambian side continued to control the match after that, but much like the first half their shooting was terrible.
The home side were made to pay for their woeful finishing when Sfaxien pulled a goal back in the 84th minute courtesy of a strike from Habib Oueslati, scoring a vital away goal ahead of the second-leg.
The second-leg of the quarter-final will take place next Sunday in Tunisia.
Nkana (1) 2 (Kampamba 36’, Tshimenga 52’)
CS Sfaxien (0) 1 (Oueslati 84’)
Teams
Nkana: Malunga, Musonda, Mohammed, Bahn, Kessy, Malambo (Ngulube 76’), Tshimenga (Mbewe 71’), Kampamba, Otieno, K Kampamba, Bwalya (Musonda 62’).
CS Sfaxien: Dahmen, Amamou, Jelassi, Dagdoug, Mathlouthi, Ben Ali (Oueslati 56’), Harzi, Korichi (Zammouri 72’), Sokari, Chaouat, Zouaghi.
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Striker Dennis Oliech has been left out of Gor Mahia’s 20-man squad set to face Algerian side Hussein Dey in a Caf Confederation Cup on Sunday.
Oliech made good his Friday’s threat when he failed to report to the team’s residential camp after Gor Mahia executive failed to settle his January salary.
Oliech was reportedly paid only Sh100,000 of his Sh250,000 monthly pay and SPORTSNEWS AFRICA reported that the player threatened to boycott the much-important Sunday’s clash unless all his dues are settled.
Oliech was conspicuously missing in K’Ogalo’s camp during their Saturday’s training session when Hassan Oktay took his charges through their paces as they had a feel of the pitch at the Kasarani Stadium.
Gor Mahia Deputy Organising Secretary Ronald Ngala termed Oliech’s much talked about go-slow as a sideshow.
Speaking to Radio Jambo, CEO Omondi Aduda confirmed that Oliech will miss the match, though he didn’t elaborate why the former Kenyan Captain was missing from the squad.
“I am at Kasarani and I can see 20 players chosen by the coach and only those available here will play. Oliech is not one of them for reasons best known to the coach because he’s the one in charge of the squad selection,” Aduda said.
Oliech signed a two-year deal with K’Ogalo in January, though the club is yet to settle the Sh2 million signing-on fee.
Gor Mahia will travel to Angola for the Caf Confederation Cup match against Petro Atletico without two key players.
Lead striker Jacques Tuyisenge has been ruled out of the trip to Angola alongside defender Philemon Otieno.
The duo picked yellow cards in the last Caf game against Zamalek.
Coach Hassan Oktay will be forced to adjust his tactical approach in the second Group D match away in Luanda with the Cypriot tactician set to miss key dependable players.
Tuyisenge, who scored a brace against Zamalek, will have to stay behind after picking a second yellow card, same as dependable defender Otieno.
K’Ogalo is expected to depart the country on at 11.30am on Tuesday for a four-hour trip to Luanda.
Oktay will now rely on Dennis Oliech and Nicholas Kipkirui for goals. The duo was also on target against Zamalek.
Good thing for Oktay is that his midfielders have started scoring after Kenneth Muguna and Francis Kahata picked their maiden goals this season in a 2-0 win over AFC Leopards on Saturday.
The traveling squad also has George Odhiambo who is yet to score this campaign as well as captain Harun Shakava and Boniface Oluoch, who is expected to retain his place in goal.
Frederick Odhiambo will provide cover for Oluoch who kept a first clean sheet against AFC Leopards.
Ernest Wendo also returns from suspension after missing the last game against Zamalek.
Traveling squad: Boniface Oluoch, Wellington Ochieng, Shafik Batambuze, Joash Onyango, Haron Shakava, Boniface Omondi, Nicholas Kipkirui, Eric Ssekisambu, Ernest Wendo, Lawrence Juma, Charles Momanyi, Kenneth Muguna, Joachim Oluoch, Mustafa Francis, Dennis Oliech, George Odhiambo, Frederick Odhiambo, Francis Kahata.
