1. Alexandre Guedes announces his presence on the African continent
Alexandre Guedes, 29, announced his presence on the continent with a brace in Tunisia for Petro Atletico against Etoile du Sahel. The former Sporting CP, Victoria Gumaeres and Famalicao forward put up an incredible performance in Tunisia for the Os Tricolos. Petro Lunada is the only team to have recorded two wins in two games thanks to Guedes’ brace.
2. West African teams record precious wins against North African teams
Nouadhibou, Dreams SC and Assc Mimosas all recorded precious wins at home. Ghana’s Medeama SC recorded a 2-1 win over CR Belouizdad, Nouadhibou beat Pyramids 2-0 with 10 men and Asec Mimosas defeated the Moroccan giants Wydad Casablanca 1-0. The WAFU zone has been poor recently in the competition so to see all three WAFU zone reps win against UNAF teams in one weekend is incredible.
3. Wydad Casablanca in trouble
After four successive defeats, Wydad Casablanca is in trouble. A 2-0 defeat in the second leg of the African football league against Sundowns, Jwaneng Galaxy shocked the Red Devils in Morocco 1-0 in MD1 of the CCL, FAR Rabat won 3-1 in the Botola PRO and Asec Mimosas narrowly won by 1-0 against Adil Ramzi’s Red Devils. This is a huge concern for Wydad Casablanca as they need a huge lift in their next two games against Jwaneng Galaxy.
4. Florent Ibenge records a super victory over Esperance
In a huge home match on neutral grounds, Al Hilal incredibly won 3-1 against Esperance at the Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Florent Ibenge’s lads lost 1-0 in Angola last week and were determined to win the three points against the Tunisian giants. Al Hilal was very efficient as they scored their goals from just 3 shots on target.
5. Astonishing Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny reminds us what the continent should expect in AFCON 2023
Asec Mimosas defeated Wydad Casablanca in Abidjan 1-0. The Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny is a modern-day sports venue with all the elements needed. Ivory Coast has built proper infrastructures hence the other irresponsible African countries that don’t have FIFA-standard venues must learn from them. The world will know how beautiful Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny is in CAN 2023.
6. John Antwi leads the young ones to beat Rivers United
Dreams FC won their first-ever home game in the Money Zone of a CAF-organised competition. The Still Believe triumphed 2-1 against the much-experienced Rivers United with John Antwi leading the young and inexperienced boys. The former Al Ahly and Pyramids forward, John Antwi, 31, opened the scoring with a header in the 35th minute for Dreams in their 2-1 win over Nigerian side, Rivers United. His experience was needed as his calmness and leadership on the pitch was exceptional.
7. Berkane shows they are one of the favourites for the CCC
RS Berkane, twice the winners of the CCC (2020,2022), has won their first two games of the competition. Paul Bassane, a 22-year-old Senegalese forward scored a first-half brace for Berkane in Bamako to put the visitors ahead. Stade Malien pulled one back through Mamadou Traore but it was just a mere consolation. Berkane will host Diables Noir in MD3 and they’re expected to win with ease against the Congolese side.
8. Are Zamalek getting back to their best?
Zamalek thrashed SOAR of Guinea 4-0 away to record back-back wins in the Confederation Cup. The win was Zamalek’s 4th consecutively as they are little by little getting back to their best. After two indifferent seasons, Zamalek are looking a bit good this season as they have moved up to 7th in the Egyptian league log.
9. USM Alger shows they can defend their title
Holders of the CAF Confederation Cup and CAF Super Cup, USM Alger are showing some glimpses of champions. USM are a bad side in the Algerian Ligue 1 but a fantastic team in inter-club competitions. USM beat Supersport 2-0 in Pretoria to record 6 points to top Group A. Qualifying to the knockout phase is guaranteed as no one can bet against them defending the title.
