CAF Inter-Club Competitions: Nigerian clubs record mixed results in preliminary round

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Nigeria’s four representatives in the CAF Champions League and Confederation Cup recorded mixed results in the first legs of their respective preliminary-round ties at the weekend.

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Rivers United and Rangers International were held to draws in the CAF Champions League, while Shooting Stars and El-Kanemi Warriors secured victories in the Confederation Cup.

Rivers United secured the most notable away result after holding Côte d’Ivoire’s FC San Pedro to a 1-1 draw in Abidjan on Saturday.

The Pride of Rivers fell behind in the 55th minute when Dosso L put the hosts ahead, but substitute Iyowuna Douglas restored parity 14 minutes later.

Douglas, who had only been introduced three minutes earlier, finished from inside the box after Alex Oyowah provided the assist following a well-worked team move.

The result leaves Rivers United with an opportunity to complete the job in the second leg, which will be played in Uyo on 13 September.

Rangers, meanwhile, were also held to a 1-1 draw by Benin Republic’s AS Sobemap in Abeokuta on Sunday.

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The Nigerian champions took the lead through Chidozie in the 32nd minute but were unable to hold on to the advantage as Sobemap fought back to secure a share of the spoils.

Rangers will now travel to Benin for the return leg, knowing that a victory or a draw with a goal would put them in a strong position to advance to the second preliminary round.

Confederation Cup

In the CAF Confederation Cup, Shooting Stars claimed a narrow but important 1-0 home victory over Tunisian side CS Sfaxien at the MKO Abiola Sports Arena in Abeokuta.

Lucky Emmanuel scored the only goal of the encounter in the 25th minute, giving the Ibadan-based club an advantage going into the second leg.

Sfaxien increased the pressure after the break in search of an equaliser, but Shooting Stars’ goalkeeper and defence stood firm to preserve the lead.

The return leg in Tunisia will provide a much tougher test for Shooting Stars as they seek to protect their slim advantage and advance to the next round.

El-Kanemi Warriors produced the most convincing result among the Nigerian clubs, defeating Guinea-Bissau’s UDIB 3-0 in Ikenne on Sunday.

Nnamdi Mejuobi was the star of the encounter, scoring in the 52nd minute before converting a penalty four minutes later to put the home side 2-0 ahead.

Dayo Wahab completed the scoring in the 88th minute as El-Kanemi secured a commanding advantage ahead of the return fixture in Guinea-Bissau.

The Maiduguri-based side will now seek to complete the job away from home and secure progression to the next round.

NFF reaction

The Acting General Secretary of the Nigeria Football Federation, Emmanuel Ikpeme, welcomed the weekend results and urged the clubs to remain focused ahead of their respective return legs.

“We are happy for them as we monitored all the matches and noticed their efforts. We believe Shooting Stars have the quality to withstand anything CS Sfaxien may throw at them during the return leg in Tunisia, and we are also using this opportunity to encourage Enugu Rangers to travel to the Benin Republic and secure the result that will see them qualify for the second round.

“El-Kanemi Warriors got a handsome win, but they should not rest on their laurels. They should go to Guinea-Bissau and play their hearts out to gain even more confidence ahead of the second-round matches.”

Mr Ikpeme also congratulated Edo Queens for winning the WAFU-B Women’s Champions League tournament in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, after defeating Ghana’s Ampem Darkoa Ladies 4-1 on penalties following a 2-2 draw.

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The victory secured Edo Queens a place in the CAF Women’s Champions League finals.

“The NFF is very proud of the achievement of Edo Queens. It is no mean feat, as they had to battle equally ambitious and focused teams. It is even more remarkable that the team they defeated in the final was the only team to have beaten them during the group phase of the tournament,” Mr Ikpeme noted.

With the first legs now completed, the Nigerian clubs face decisive away fixtures, with Rangers, Shooting Stars and El-Kanemi Warriors all needing to protect or overturn their respective results on the road. At the same time, Rivers United will look to build on their valuable away draw in Uyo.