Four more sides booked their places in the quarterfinals of this season’s CAF Confederation Cup following the conclusion of the penultimate round of matches of the group stage on Sunday.
In Group A, Libya’s Al Ahly Tripoli defeated already-qualified Pyramids FC 1-0 in Benghazi courtesy of a second half own goal by Omar Gaber. The result saw Al Ahly Tripoli join Pyramids FC in the knockout stage and leapfrog their Egyptian opponents into first place in the group on 12 points while Pyramids have 10 points.
In the other group match, Boyd Musonda scored the only goal as bottom-of-the-table Zanaco stunned three-time winners CS Sfaxien 1-0 in Lusaka to record their first win of the campaign. CS Sfaxien remain third on four points while Zanaco has three points.
In Group B, South African giants Orlando Pirates also ensured their spot in the last eight with a 2-0 win away to JS Saoura in Algeria. The 2015 runners-up scored through Ntsikelelo Nyauza and Kabelo Dlamini but finished the game with 10 men following the dismissal of Goodman Mosele.
Libyan side Al-Ittihad avoided a shock result by coming from 2-1 down to defeat Royal Leopards 3-2. Sanad Al Warfali scored twice, including a stoppage-time winner, as Al-Ittihad edged ahead in the race to book the final qualifying spot in the group.
Orlando Pirates to the table with 12 points followed by Al-Ittihad with 10 points then JS Saoura with seven points and Royal Leopards props up the table with zero points.
Al-Ittihad will face Orlando Pirates in the last round of matches while JS Saoura will tackle Royal Leopards.
In Group C, Al Masry and TP Mazembe also confirmed qualification after avoiding defeat in their respective matches.
Al Masry defeated Cotonsport 2-0 while TP Mazembe drew 2-2 with Otoho d’Oyo. Al Masry leads the group with 10 points followed by TP Mazembe with eight points. Otoho d’Oyo is third with five points but cannot overhaul TP Mazembe who have a better head-to-head record against them. Cameroonian side Cotonsport is bottom with three points.
Group D remains wide open with all four sides still having a chance to advance. ASEC Mimosas of Côte d’Ivoire thumped Tanzania’s Simba 3-0 to go top of the group with nine points while Simba dropped from first to third with seven points.
The other group game saw 2020 winners RS Berkane of Morocco rescue a 2-2 draw away to Niger’s US Gendarmerie. Mouad Fekkak came off the bench to net the equalizer in injury time in the second half. RS Berkane sits in second place on seven points, with a better goal difference than Simba, while US Gendarmerie is fourth with five points.
ASEC Mimosas will play RS Berkane while Simba will play US Gendarmerie in the group’s final matches.
The final round of group games will take place on April 3.
(Story compiled with assistance from wire reports)