After a victory and two draws which propelled it to the top of the Group B standings of the CAF Champions Leaguel’AS FAR approaches the groups’ return phase with the ambition of consolidating its position. This Saturday, for the 4th day, the Military will welcome Maniema Unitedwho will travel to Meknes Stadium of Honor. This speaker has just been approved by the Confederation of African Footballas the stadium selected for African inter-club competitions. Rabie Hraimate and company will be looking for their second victory and the first at home, since their only success in Group B was snatched at the Raja of Casablanca.
Full of confidence after recovering second position in the ranking of the Bottle Pro You D1the members of the capital chained three successive victories in the championship, at the end of December, under the orders of Hubert Velud. This Saturday, Amine Zouhzouh’s teammates will respond to a team still undefeated in group B. Indeed, the Congolese of Maniema managed to hold off the three other clubs in the group, although on paper they are the less experienced of the hen. The DRC team managed to hold on to the Raja and theAS FAR on their lands, after snatching a draw at Loftus Versfeld against the Mamelodi Sundowns. This Saturday, the Congolese will certainly aim for a fourth draw, to refresh their chances of qualification and limit the damage against the main candidate for first place. Maniema Union should once again cede the ball to the Military and strengthen its last two lines, by proceeding with a counter-attack. Velud’s protégés will try to monopolize the ball and will have to be efficient from the first minutes if they hope to avoid the trap of a draw at home. Note that AS FAR will play in Meknes for the first time in the Champions League, the club having become accustomed to hosting Kenitra in the past.
Only one option for Raja: win or give up on qualification
Ten days after the departure of their Portuguese coach Ricardo Sa Pintothe Green Eagles will find the Mamelodi Sundowns this Saturday, the same team which caused the dismissal of the Lusitanian technician after the 1-0 defeat in Pretoria. Last in group B, Raja faces a fairly simple equation: collect 9 points at the end of the next three matches or prepare to leave the African C1 in the group stage. On the lawn of Larbi Zaouli stadium (which seems to have been overused during the first phase in Botola D1 and the Champions League), Adam Naffati and company will have no other choice but to overthrow the South Africans. Raja had chosen to suffer in Pretoria in the first leg and had managed to limit the danger from the opposing attackers for an hour of play, but the team ended up cracking in the 65th minute. This Saturday, the gang Hafid Abdessadeq should proceed differently, she who will be forced to play the game to achieve victory. However, doubts persist over the attackers’ ability to weigh on Mamelodi Sundowns’ defense. The defensive line also raises fears, especially given the performance of the central hinge during the last two meetings, sealed by two defeats with a score of 2-0 against Difaâ d’El Jadida and Renaissance de Berkane. The Mamelodi Sundowns will be pushing hard to snatch the three points from Casablanca, to keep the pressure on AS FAR. A victory for the Greens or a draw in the Raja-Sundowns duel will be a valuable gift for the Military, who could take a huge step towards qualification in the next round, if necessary.
Morocco
