Exactly 15 years after losing the CAF Champions
league final to Egyptian giants Al Ahly, Mamelodi
Sundowns of South Africa will be hoping to erase
that sad memory as they try to make history today
when they host another Egyptian team, Zamalek in
the second leg of the finals of the 2016 edition of the
African premier club competition.
The Buccaneers, South African champions who
defeated their Egyptian counterparts home and away
during the group stage will be coming to Alexandria
with three goals in their kitty, after they managed to
end the first leg in Pretoria last week in grand style.
Anthony Laffor and Tebogo Langerman scored twice
in the first half last Saturday, before Zamalek’s defender
Islam Gamal scored an own goal a minute from
the end of the first half to give Sundowns a convincing
lead ahead of the return leg today at the Borg El
Arab Stadium in Alexandria.
A closer look at the finals of the Champions League
since 1997, indicates that no team has managed to
overturn a two-goal deficit from the first leg, let alone
three goals, as is the case this year, which is an indication
that the South Africans might be as good as lifting
the trophy for the first time in the club’s history.
It is on record that only three times in the Champions
League era has a side lost the first leg of the final
and gone on to claim the trophy; Raja Casablanca in
1997, Enyimba in 2004 and TP Mazembe in 2009.
In all three of those instances, the first-leg deficit
was only one goal and the teams in question won either
by penalties or the away goals rule.
The only instance of a team recovering from a
three-goal deficit in the final of this competition
was way back in 1976 when MC Alger lost 3-0 away to
Guinea’s Haifa FC in the first leg, but won the return
match by the same score. The tie was locked 3-3 on aggregate
and MC Alger won 4-1 on penalties.
Zamalek, known by their fans as “White Knights”
who are gunning for their sixth title will need to pull
something special out of the hat if they are to claim
the continental crown.
On paper, the South Africans appear to have won
the title but a closer look at Zamalek history reveals
that the team is always at its best when playing in
front of their vociferous supporters in Alexandria
and will be counting on their famous comebacks to
prevent Sundowns writing their names in history
books as one the few teams to have lifted the prestigious
African title.
However, despite succumbing to a 3-0 defeat in the
first leg final , fans of Egyptian giants Zamalek have
refused to throw in the towel and end their sixth continental
glory dreams, insisting that the team is capable
of re-enacting their famous 1984 African Cup
of Champions Clubs (now CAF Champions League)
semi-final match comeback when the team lost away
to Algeria’s JS Kabylie 3-1, and looked destined to lose
the battle but proved book makers wrong by winning
3-0 in Cairo and reaching the final, before going all the
way to win their first ever continental title.
Speaking on today’s cracker, Mamelodi Sundowns
Coach Pitso Mosimane noted that although his team
won the first leg convincingly, but they are not going
to underrate their North African opponents who are
capable of causing heartache to any team when playing
in front of their fans.
“We are already few minutes into the history books
and we will not allow our previous records against the
Egyptians affect our performance in today’s finals.
“The players are aware of the danger posed by Zamalek
and will not allow the first leg victory affect
their performance. We are here to take the trophy to
South Africa and we will be at our best till the end of
the game”, he stated.
Also speaking on today’s match, Zamalek coach
Moamen Soliman says they need a miracle to survive
their opponents.
The young coach who acknowledges that they need
to score four un-replied goals to lift the continental title
in front of their fans expressed hope that his players
can surmount the odd.
Winner of the competition will pocket US$1.5 million
prize-money and the ticket to represent Africa at
the FIFA Club World Cup in December in Japan.
Should Sundowns emerge victorious in Alexandria,
they will be the first South African club to represent
the continent at the FIFA Club World Cup and
it would complete their fairytale triumph, given they
had been eliminated in the preliminary rounds but
handed a berth in the group phase when Congolese
club AS Vita Club were found to have fielded a player
supposed to be suspended after a red card.
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