Staff Reporter.
Orlando Pirates will be looking to reach their fourth continental final when they host Al Ahli Tripoli in the CAF Confederation Cup semi-final, second-leg match at Orlando Stadium on Sunday.
Pirates are in complete control of this tie having claimed a 2-0 win over their Libyan opposition in the first-leg encounter in Benghazi on May 8 as the South African side produced a strong first half performance.
Innocent Maela opened the scoring just eight minutes into the match which was played at the Benina Martyrs Stadium where Pirates had lost 3-2 to Al Ahli’s local rivals, Al Ittihad in a Group B encounter on February 20.
The 1995 African champions doubled their lead through Goodman Mosele a minute before the half-hour mark and the goal sealed the visitors’ second successive victory in Africa’s secondary club tournament.
The defeat ended Al Ahli’s seven-match unbeaten run in Confederation Cup, but they will be banking on their good away record in the competition as coach Fathi Al-Jabal’s side is undefeated in their last three games on the road.
Nicknamed the Leaders, Al Ahli will now be hoping to overturn the deficit and reach their first continental final since 1994 when they qualified for the CAF African Cup Winners Cup final.
However, Pirates, who won the 1996 CAF Super Cup, are no pushovers at home as they are enjoying a 14-match unbeaten run at their iconic home ground, Orlando Stadium.
The Buccaneers have to avoid a defeat against the Leaders in order to reach their fourth continental final having taken part in the 1995 CAF Champions League, 2013 Champions League and 2015 Confederation Cup finals.
The winner on aggregate between the two sides will take on either RS Berkane of Morocco or DR Congolese giants TP Mazembe in the final at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo, Nigeria on May 20.
Meanwhile RS Berkane will be determined to cause an upset when they square off with TP Mazembe in the CAF Confederation Cup semi-final, second-leg match at Stade Municipal de Berkane on Sunday.
The Moroccan side came into this tie as the underdogs due to Mazembe’s incredible pedigree in African football, but the Oranges were able to frustrate the five-time CAF Champions League winners in the first-leg clash on May 8.
The Ravens needed John Bakata’s stoppage-time goal to secure a 1-0 win over a stubborn Berkane side who were unlucky to concede in the last minute of the encounter which was played at the Stade TP Mazembe in Lubumbashi.
Berkane have gained a lot of continental pedigree in the last few years, especially in the Confederation Cup and they know what it takes to reach the final of Africa’s secondary club tournament.
The Oranges took part in the 2019 and 2020 finals – losing to Egyptian football powerhouse Zamalek in 2019, before defeating Pyramids of Egypt in 2020 as they claimed their maiden continental trophy.