Micho's Zamalek out to avoid CAFCL shock

Milutin Sredojević

Wednesday Sep 25, 2019. 14:00

AfricanFootball.com takes a look at big teams staring down the barrel in the CAF Champions League.

The first round second-leg qualifiers will commence this weekend with the 16 aggregate winners to book their place in the group stages of Africa’s premier cup competition for the 2019/20 season.

The 16 losers of the first round will enter the CAF Confederations Cup play-off round where they will battle for a place in the group stages of the continent’s second tier competition.

Defending CAFCC champions and five-time CAFCL winners Zamalek will have it all to do when they host Senegal’s Generation Foot in Cairo this weekend.

The White Knights lost 2-1 in Thies earlier this month, but will be expected to overturn the result on home soil. Following defeat to Al Ahly in the Egyptian Super Cup, pressure will be on head coach Milutin Sredojević, knowing all too well that failure to book the club’s place in the CAFCL group stages could bring an end to his reign.

Elsewhere, Etoile du Sahel will be aiming to bounce back from a 2-0 loss away to Asante Kotoko in Kumasi while Enyimba have a mountain to climb in Sudan where they will face Al-Hilal.

Mamelodi Sundowns, Wydad Casablanca and TP Mazembe have it a bit easier following favourable first-leg results with the Brazilians having notably trounced Seychelles’ Cote d’Or 5-0 in Victoria.

Defending CAFCL champions Esperance de Tunis were held to a 1-1 draw by Elect-Sport in Chad, but will be overwhelming favourites when the two teams meet for a second time in Rades this weekend.