Tricky visits await big guns in CAF Champions League

The three cities will play host to big guns including holders, Al-Ahly, and others who drew a bye at the prelims in interesting encounters, that headlines the theme of the weekend matches.In Dar es Salaam, Tanzanian champions, Young Africans will square Ahly in a repeat of their meeting at the same stage five years ago. […]

The three cities will play host to big guns including holders, Al-Ahly, and others who drew a bye at the prelims in interesting encounters, that headlines the theme of the weekend matches.
In Dar es Salaam, Tanzanian champions, Young Africans will square Ahly in a repeat of their meeting at the same stage five years ago. Yanga, architects of the biggest win at the previous round (12-2 aggregate win over Komorizine of Comoros) face an Ahly side, still reveling in their CAF Super Cup triumph which earned them the accolade as the ‘world most decorated club international titles’ with 19 titles.
Though Ahly came out victors in the last meeting in 2009 thanks to a Flavio Amado sixth minute strike, Yanga are poised to rewrite the books this time and even sent their assistant trainer Charles Boniface to spy on the Egyptians during the CAF Super Cup. The eight-time winners still have the likes Wael Gomaa, Emad Moteab, Housam Ashour, Sayed Moawad and Ahmed Fathy (who featured in the meeting five years ago) to rely on their experience against their hosts, yet to taste a win in matches between the two sides.
Yanga coach, Hans Van der Pluijm is someone who knows all about the Cairo-based, having played against them with Ghanaian side, Berekum Chelsea in 2012 at the group phase, and expects striker Mrisho Ngassa, top scorer with six goals, to rise to the occasion.
“We know it won’t be an easy game because Al Ahly is a very strong team with a great tradition and they know how to play these types of games. We don’t fear them. We have big ambitions this time around and will do everything to qualify for the next round,” said the Dutchman.
Moving south to Nairobi, Gor Mahia will square two-time winners Esperance of Tunisia in a tricky duel, 27-years after beating the Tunisians in the final of the defunct CAF Cup Winners’ Cup. After their 1987 continental conquest, incidentally a year that saw them win the Kenyan league unbeaten, ‘K’ogalo’ have failed to replicate that performance and appear to be rediscovering their spark after winning the national league last year for the first time since 1995.
Up north to Addis Ababa, CS Sfaxien, fresh from their 3-2 loss to Ahly in the CAF Super Cup will be up against Ethiopian champions, Dedebit. The Tunisians are still sweating over the fitness of Gabonese midfielder Didier Ibrahim Ndong, as they seek to launch their continental campaign on a positive note.
Elsewhere in Burundi, Flambeau de l’EST will battle it out with Coton Sport of Cameroon.
The Western part of the continent is the next step, where four-time winners TP Mazembe of DR Congo trek the Cameroonian city of Douala to face Les Astres, who thumped Akonangui of Equatorial Guinea 4-0 at the preliminary round. Mazembe approach the game in a good mood after overcoming city rivals St. Eloi Lupopo 2-0 in the Lubumbashi derby at the weekend.
Raja Athletic Club of Morocco will travel to Conakry to face Guinean champions, Horoya whilst Stade Malien of Mali battles it out with Al-Hilal, the only surviving Sudanese club following the ouster of rivals Al-Merreikh at the previous round.
Hilal coach Nasreddine Nabi, who guided AC Leopards of Congo to the CAF Confederation Cup title in 2012, is inspired by a 1-1 draw he snatched in Bamako at the group phase of the second-tier continental club championship, in their run to the ultimate.
 “They are a strong side with no less than four players in the Mali national team, with a coach who has been with the team for a while. Our chances are equal and we have to do our best to win,” Nabi told Cafonline.com.
Five-time winners, Zamalek of Egypt will face an uphill task against newcomers Kabuscorp of Angola. The big-spending Angolan champions, who have former TP Mazembe captain, Tresor Mputu Mabi and ex-Cameroon striker Albert Meyong on their roster, will pose a big threat to the Cairo-giants, managed by legend Ahmed Hossam ‘Mido.’
Mido lashed out his players for their lukewarm performance against Ittihad Shorta in their one-all draw with Ittihad Shorta last Monday, and has charged them to be up to the task against the Luanda-based club.
Primeiro de Agosto, the other Angolan representative will travel to Dolisie to face AC Leopards of Congo whilst Kaizer Chiefs of South Africa lock horns with Liga Muculmana of Mozambique in an-all Southern African affair.
Giant-killers’ AS Real of Mali will visit Aba as guests of Enyimba, Nigeria’s only surviving club whilst Liberian champions, Barrack Young Controllers contends with Sewe Sport of Cote d’Ivoire in Monrovia.
In the northeastern Algerian town of Setif, local side Entente Setif will seek to give their fans something to cheer about against ASFA Yennenga of Burkina Faso whilst Ahli Benghazi of Libya will cross swords with Ghana’s Berekum Chelsea in Berekum.
Zimbabwean champions, Dynamos will face AS Vita Club of DR Congo in Harare whilst Nkana FC of Zambia engages Kampala City Council of Uganda in a match of equals in Kitwe.
The second leg matches will take place on the weekend of 7-9 March with the winners advancing to the 1/8th round.