Orlando Pirates of South Africa return to the scene of their greatest triumph when they face Asec Mimosas of Côte d’Ivoire on Sunday in the African Champions League.
Held at home in the 1995 final, the Buccaneers stunned a capacity crowd at the Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan by winning the return match 1-0 and giving South Africa its solitary success in the competition.
Asec dominated before their supporters only to be the let down by a comical second-half defensive blunder that saw several Ivorians collide in pursuit of the ball and Jerry ”Legs of Thunder” Sikhosana tap the ball into the net.
Consolation for Asec came three years later with victory over Dynamos of Zimbabwe but, despite many subsequent appearances, further glory has eluded the pride of Abidjan.
Under French coach Patrick Liewig, an austere figure who paces the touchline like a sergeant major does a parade ground, Asec appear a cut above most of the eight Champions League challengers.
Playing Brazil-style football, the ”Mimosas” have dominated Group B since snatching a stoppage-time equaliser against Pirates in Johannesburg courtesy of Nigeria-born Emmanuel Umoh.
They whipped two former champions, Hearts of Oak of Ghana and Enyimba of Nigeria, by three-goal margins in their Abidjan citadel with regular scorer Didier Ya Konan particularly impressive.
And a goalless draw at Enyimba last month proved Asec have allied steel to skill, making them arguably the biggest threat to defending champions al-Ahly of Egypt.
Victory over Pirates will assure Asec of first place in the pool while the South Africans can still accompany them into the semi-finals by overcoming Enyimba in Johannesburg next weekend.
The odds are against Pirates completing an Abidjan double as they have been hit by injuries, transfers and suspensions, leaving Serb coach Milutin Sredojevic with just one recognised striker in Blaise ”Lebo’ Mbele.
A native of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mbele scored in the 1-1 draw against Asec and, more significantly, clinically struck the second-half goal that delivered a crucial 1-0 victory at Hearts of Oak in the previous round.
Success on the road after a disappointing goalless deadlock at home to the Ghanaians lifted Pirates above Enyimba, one of only two clubs to successfully defend the title since its inception 42 years ago.
Enyimba, a pale shadow of the squad that conquered Africa in 2003 and 2004, must defeat Hearts in the south-east Nigerian town of Aba on Sunday to retain a realistic chance of making the last four.
However, after being held at home by Pirates and Asec, Enyimba coach Alphonsus Dike will take nothing for granted, even if Hearts have been the worst performers in the group phase, taking just one point from four outings.
Ahly coach Manuel Jose from Portugal will hardly need to motivate his squad ahead of a home date on Saturday with Group A surprise packets Club Sportif Sfaxien, the only survivors not to have won the competition.
It was the unfashionable club from the Mediterranean town of Sfax who ended a 78-match unbeaten run by Ahly on African soil spanning more than two years when they won the opening-round clash 1-0 thanks to an Issam Merdassi goal.
Ahly were back to their ruthless best at home two weeks ago, scoring four goals in 11 minutes to crush Asante Kotoko of Ghana 4-0, with midfielder Mohammed Aboutraika the catalyst in his comeback following an injury.
Victory would take Ahly to the top of the table, one point above Sfaxien, going into the final series of fixtures as both seek to finish first and avoid the likely prospect of tackling Asec in the semifinals.
If Hearts have been the major disappointment, twice champions Jeunesse Sportive Kabylie of Algeria are a close second with three consecutive losses leading to the sacking of pensive French coach Jean-Yves Chay.
The sole success came in the opening round at home to Kotoko, who should gain revenge when they meet in Obuasi, temporary home of the ”Porcupine Warriors” as their Kumasi base is renovated for the 2008 African Nations Cup.
A $1-million cheque awaits the African champions and an invitation to the Fifa club world championship in Japan, where Ahly performed poorly last year, losing to al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia and Sydney of Australia. — AFP
