The second-week matches of the CAF Confederation Cup, Africa’s second most valuable continental tournament, have concluded.
The Algerian team Constantine defeated Tanzanian side Simba 2-1. Simba had taken the lead in the 24th minute with a beautiful goal by Mohamed Husseini. However, midfielder Abdulrazack Hamza scored an own goal early in the second half.
Then, in the 50th minute, Brahim Dib scored a goal from outside the penalty area, giving his team the victory. Simba remained on 3 points in the group, while Constantine moved up to 6 points.
The other match in the group was between Angola’s Bravos de Maquis and Tunisia’s Sfaxien.
The match was a high-scoring one. Angola opened the scoring in the 27th minute through winger Abednego Mosiatlhaga. However, Sfaxien responded two minutes later with a goal from Mohamed Dhaoui. Despite this, the Angolan side was determined to win at home, and they extended their lead to 3-1 before halftime with goals from Jo Paciencia and Macaiabo.
Early in the second half, Sfaxien’s Hazem Haj-Hassen scored, giving them hope. However, no further goals came, and the match ended 3-2 in favor of Bravos de Maquis. Sfaxien, having failed to earn any points in two matches, is at the bottom of the group, while Bravos de Maquis earned their first 3 points.
In Group B, Moroccan side RS Berkane continued their strong form with a 3-1 away win over South African side Stellenbosch. RS Berkane’s Youssef Zghoudi scored two goals within the first 15 minutes, and Reda Hajji added a fantastic goal to make it 3-0. Late in the game, Chumani Thembile Butsaka scored for Stellenbosch, but it wasn’t enough.
Stellenbosch remained without any points from their first two matches, while RS Berkane topped the group with 6 points from two wins.
In the other match of the group, Angola’s Lunda Sul and Mali’s Stade Malien ended in a 1-1 draw.
In Group C, Botswana’s Orapa United and Ivory Coast’s ASEC Mimosas played to a goalless draw. The other match saw Algerian side USM Alger and Senegal’s ASC Jaraaf also draw 0-0. As a result, Group C’s second week of matches saw no goals scored.
In Group D, Egyptian side Al-Masry was very close to defeating Mozambican side Black Bulls, but in the 90+2 minute, Feliciano Jone Nene’s goal led to a 1-1 draw.
Nigerian side Enyimba also drew 2-2 with Egypt’s powerful Zamalek.
Zamalek had taken a 2-0 lead with goals from Seifeddine Jaziri and Omar Faraj, but Enyimba responded with a stunning strike by Ifeanyi Ihemekwele to make it 2-1 before halftime. In the 57th minute, Chinedu Chukwu Ufere equalized for Enyimba, making it 2-2. No more goals came, but Zamalek was left understanding that Enyimba is not a team to be underestimated.