BY Batsirai Sango.
March 5th and 6th, 2024 saw the continent’s football titans clash in the 2nd legs of the quarter finals of the CAF Champions league, for a place in the last four of Africa’s premiere club football competition.
Cairo giants and the continent’s club of the century Al Ahly played host to Dar es Salaam favorites Simba SC whose first leg encounter a week prior in Tanzania had been the only one to produce a goal with the other 3 matches of the last 8 encounters ending in goalless stalemates.
It was definitely an entertaining, enthralling climax to the quarter finals as all encounters hanged in the balance as all protagonists still had the chance of making it through except maybe for Al Ahly who held a slight advantage having won 1nil at Simba.
Friday March the 5th saw two matches taking place with Tshwane juggernauts Mamelodi Sundowns hosting another Dar es Salaam outfit in Young Africans at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria with Al Ahly hosting Simba SC at the Cairo international stadium in the Egyptian capital.
A gallant match it was in Tshwane as nothing could separate the two again as was the case in the 1st leg proving they are no more minnows in African football, with the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast having proved that, again with this season’s champions league further cementing the narrative with Moroccan giants Wydad Casablanca knocked out in the group stages.
The Sundowns, Young Africans encounter had to go to the dreaded penalty shootout but that was before what social media platforms have been awash, buzzing with as huge controversy with Young Africans denied what looked like a clear goal according to some in the football circles.
In the 59th minute in the 2nd half Yanga’s number 10 Aziz hit the inside of the upright post of the Sundowns goal with Rownan Williams beaten by the sheer bullet speed it was hit with, coming down and whether or not it crossed the line became the controversy with failing to determine given the single video angle there was.
Social media has been buzzing with all kinds of accusations, allegations against the match official, Mamelodi Sundowns and the entire CAF leadership, but with clear hindsight how would have Mamelodi Sundowns foreseen the occurrence of such an incident taking place in the match that they would preplan against it, it escapes every logic there is, its utterly preposterous, had they got a dubious penalty yes but alas.
Without goal line technology and VAR not being able to give conclusive decision determining whether or the ball had crossed line, the on field no goal decision stood and opinion has been divided up until, one can remember the UEFA Champions league semifinal involving Chelsea and Liverpool in 2005 at Anfield.
Without goal line technology at the time Liverpool’s goal bound attempt by Luis Garcia was adjudged to have crossed the line which to this day Jose Mourinho who was Chelsea coach then believes the goal didn’t cross the line as William Gallas cleared it off the line.
To the CAF Champions league, with Williams having been Bafana Bafana’s hero in the AFCON in penalty shootout win against Cape Verde, Sundowns were surely riding their luck from 12 yards and Young African were first to go from 12 yards.
And as fate would have it Williams went to his left saving the first kick giving Masandawana the early advantage in the lottery, next to step up was Marcelo Allende and what a perfect spot kick hitting the roof net sending the keeper the wrong.
Sundowns would miss the 2nd spot kick leaving the lottery one apiece as Yanga scored their second, Ribeiro took the advantage back to Sundowns scoring the 3rd so did Gwede for Yanga. Maema kept the advantage with Sundowns making it 3-2 and the pressure went back to Yanga with Hamad missing the 5th spot kick sending Loftus Versfeld into rapturous celebrations.
Al Ahly ensured their semifinal berth beating Simba by 2 goals to nil in Cairo and 3 nil on aggregate. Saturday saw 2 other matches taking place in Luanda with Petro Luanda playing Tp Mazembe, and Lubumbashi outfit left it late to score in injury time winning the encounter 2-1, with Asec Mimosa losing at home in Abidjan 4-2 on penalties to Esperance.
The semifinal match ups promise to be another humdinger with the great continent divided into the Sub-Saharan side and the Maghreb, with the protagonists coming from either side of the equator.
The continent now awaits Tp Mazembe and Al Ahly with Mazembe first to host the Cairo giants on April 19 with Esperance versus Mamelodi Sundowns taking place the same day and what epic encounters await the continent in 2 weeks time.
Countdown begins now!
