Egyptian team Al-Ahly lead a powerful line-up into the third and final qualifying round for the African Champions League this weekend. Defending champions Ahly, who outclassed Etoile Sahel of Tunisia 3-0 on aggregate last November to lift the trophy a fourth time, are among nine former champions in first-leg action.
Al-Ahly play away to competition surprise packets Renacimiento of Equatorial Guinea, who squeezed past favoured Africa Sports of Ivory Coast and Stade Alien of Mali on away goals.
Renacimiento like to leave it late, scoring the tie-clinching equaliser against Africa Sport in the final minute and edging Malien courtesy of a stoppage-time penalty.
Often among the whipping boys of African football, Equatorial Guinea clubs have benefited from an oil boom in the tiny central African island state, luring players from neighbouring countries. Al-Ahly will parade many of the stars who helped Egypt win the African Nations Cup two months ago, although injuries rule out midfielders Mohamed Barakat and Mohamed Shawky.
The draw kept the former champions apart except for Jeunesse Sportive Kabylie of Algeria and Raja Casablanca of Morocco, whose clash in Algiers seems set to be a highlight of the eight-match programme.
Raja received the perfect morale boost with a 2-1 midweek win at Egyptian club ENPPI in the first leg of the Arab Champions League final, but Argentine coach Luis Oscar Fullone is concerned about fatigue: " We have been forced to fulfil two top-class international fixtures in less than a week and fly for many hours in between. The pressure on my players is immense," moaned the South American.
Fullone led ASEC of Ivory Coast to the 1998 Champions League title and repeated the feat with Raja 12 months later.
There are Moroccan concerns about the fitness of striker Mohsen Iajour while Kabylie will pay special attention to Mustapha Bidoudane, whose first-leg hat-trick set up an 8-2 rout of Burundians Inter Stars in the previous round.
CS Sfaxien of Tunisia must do without suspended defender and matchwinner Issam Merdassi when they entertain FAR Rabat of Morocco in another intriguing North African clash. Merdassi struck the second-leg goal that gave Sfaxien victory over Daring Club Motema Pembe in the intimidating cauldron of the Democratic Republic of Congo after Sfaxien appeared in trouble by only drawing at home. FAR won the other African club competition, the Confederation Cup, last year and took Al-Ahly to a penalty shootout in Cairo before conceding defeat in the annual, one-off Super Cup match. But Rabat struggled under new coach Henri Stambouli in the second round, pipping another military outfit, APR of Rwanda, on away goals after two slender home victories.
The Hearts of Oak camp resembles a mobile hospital as the 2000 champions from Ghana prepare to welcome Etoile Sahel, the other Tunisian challengers and runners-up to Enyimba of Nigeria and Ahly in the last two editions. Defender Michael Donkor, midfielders Eric Nyarko and Francis Bossman and striker Ekow Ghansah face late fitness tests for the Phobians, who staged an amazing second round recovery. Trailing Saint George by four goals after the first leg in Ethiopia, Hearts pulled two back at home before the East Africans stormed off to protest a late first half penalty and were disqualified. Ground renovations in Accra and Kumasi for the 2008 African Nations Cup mean Hearts and Asante Kotoko must stage home fixtures at Obuasi, where Kotoko face the other giantkillers, USCAFOOT of Madagascar.
Orlando Pirates of South Africa have fired 16 goals in four outings, but should find Al-Hilal of Sudan harder to penetrate although the stamina-sapping 1,600-metre altitude of Johannesburg may trouble the visitors.
Port Autonome of Senegal want coach Malick Daf back just two weeks after firing him as they prepare to meet ASEC in Dakar while 2003 and 2004 champions.
Enyimba have home advantage over Saint Eloi Lupopo of DR Congo.
