- Simba face Asec Mimosas in Abidjan
- They are second in the group with five points
- Al Hilal is the other East African side in action
Tanzanian giants Simba SC will seek a vital three points in Ivory Coast when they take on Asec Mimosas in their fourth Group B match of the CAF Champions League.
Simba have five points and sit second in the group, five behind leaders Asec and victory away from home will be crucial to push their bid for a quarter final place.
Victory will push them to eight points with two rounds of matches left and will ensure the gap with third placed Jwaneng Galaxy remains.
Simba Head coach Abdelhak Benchikha says they are ready for the duel and the players know what is at stake.
“We know it will be a tough game. We need to win and get those three points because they will put us at a good spot to battle for the quarter finals and that remains our target,” the Algerian trainer said.
The first leg meeting between these two sides in Dar es Salaam ended 1-1 with Serge Pokou scoring the lequalizer for Asec in the 77th minute to cancel out Saido Ntibanzokinza’s opener for Simba.
Heading into the second leg, Wekundu wa Msimbazi are eager to ensure they turn the single point to three.
“We have prepared really well as a team. The coaches have done well to prepare us and we know how important these three points are. We have to work harder to ensure we get three points,” said Simba skipper Aishi Manula.
Simba have hope, Hilal need win
Al Hilal players during a training session
Meanwhile, Sudanese champions Al Hilal will look to revive their dreams when they take on Group C leaders Petro de Luanda in a match that will be played in Libya. Hilal are playing their home matches in North Africa as none of their facilities have been approved by CAF as yet.
The Sudanese side are bottom of the group with four points and need to win to ensure they retain their dream of making it into the quarter finals.
Coach Florent Ibenge knows the weight of expectation on the team and says they have to beat Petro to give themselves hope.
“Three points will be very important for us and even the players understand this. We have had a very long period of preparation and I believe this has given us time to correct what we feel was not working well for us. We are ready and we will do the job,” the Congolese tactician said.
A win will take them to seven points and second in the group, pending the result between Etoile du Sahel and Esperance in the other group match. Defeat however will be detrimental to their campaign.
They lost the first leg 1-0 away to Petro in Angola. For the Luanda-based club, victory will be vital as it will put them one foot into the quarter finals as they will be on 11 points, with two rounds of matches remaining.
Reigning champs Ahly tackle Medeama in Kumasi
Al Ahly players training in Kumasi
In another fixture, record African champions Al Ahly have arrived in Kumasi, ready to take on Medeama SC in their penultimate Group D match of the CAF Champions League, A technical hitch on their connecting plane from Accra to Kumasi had earlier on slowed down The Red Devils and had made a request to CAF to postpone the fixture.
However, they have since made it in time and had one training session, enough to get them ready for Friday night’s clash.
“We know we are facing a really difficult opponent but we have prepared well to play and win. The players are all looking sharp and ready and everyone is focused,” said Marcel Koller, the Ahly coach.
The reigning champions had an earlier start to the resumption of the Champions League last weekend, as they played Algeria’s CR Belouizdad in a catch up fixture that had been earlier postponed. The game ended 0-0.
In a tight group, they are on top with six points. Only two points separate them from bottom side Medeama. A win in Kumasi will take them to nine points and a step closer to the quarter finals. CRB are third in the group with five points, same as third placed Young Africans of Tanzania.
The two sides face off on Saturday.
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