CAF Confederation Cup:Club Africain Ride Over Sunshine To final

The goalless game Nigeria’s Sunshine Stars played with Club Africain of Tunisia yesterday was not enough to stop the North Africans from reaching the final of this year’s CAF Confederation Cup.

The Nigerian team, who lost the first leg of the semi-final in Nigeria, played the game of their lives yesterday inside an empty El Menzah Stadium in Tunis.

But this was short of stopping their hosts from reaching their first continental final since 1999 on a 1-0 aggregate having won the first clash 1-0 in Nigeria a fortnight ago at the Dipo Dina International Stadium, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State.

MTNFootball.com reports that Sunshine Stars coached by Gbenga Odubote were the more enterprising team and enjoyed more of the possession but their final ball almost always let them down.

Club Africain, who missed Aymen Soltani and Wajdi Mechergui through injury, chose to sit back in defence for most part of this game and relied more on quick counter attacks spearheaded by skipper Zouheir Dhaouadi.

Chad international striker Ezechiel Ndouassel, who was the second-half match winner in Ijebu-Ode, got the best chance of the first half in the 37th minute but was missed on the goal line.

Dhaouadi beat goalkeeper Moses Ocheje and his effort seemed to be trickling across the Sunshine goal line before Ndouassel’s knee brought it out.

In the 71st minute, Dele Olorundare’s long distance shot came off the post with the Club Africain goalkeeper Ben Ayoub clearly beaten.

Olorundare had forced Ayoub to save a low shot in the 28th minute.

The ever-dangerous Dhaouadi shot wide at goal in the 56th minute and then forced Ocheje to tip a goal-bound shot for a corner in the 89th minute.

And moments later, he was booked for diving when he failed to hit target when up against only the Sunshine goalkeeper.
Club Africain, 1991 African champions, will now await the winners of Sunday’s other semi-final between Maghreb de Fes of Morocco and Angola’s Interclube.

Interclube hold a slender advantage having won the first clash 2-1 at home.