The winner of Group A in the 2022-23 CAF Champions League will be decided on Saturday when defending champions Wydad AC host Algeria’s JS Kabylie at the Stade Mohamed V in Casablanca. The clubs are level on ten points from five matches with JSK holding the advantage in the tiebreaker if the teams draw. Wydad will be eager to earn three points at home to secure top spot and the advantage of hosting the second leg of the quarterfinals that comes with it.
Wydad were hit with a major blow over the international break when goalkeeper Ahmed Reda Tagnouti suffered a knee injury while training with the Morocco national team. Head coach Juan Carlos Garrido has Youssef El Motie, former AS Monaco youth player Yanis Hénin and Morocco youth national team keeper Taha Mourid to select from to replace Tagnouti for an important match on Saturday. After featuring for Morocco, left back Yahya Attiyat Allah is expected to play from the start for a club that has not lost since their prior meeting against JSK on February 17.
On the other side, Kabylie have exceeded all expectations in Group A and will now attempt to stun Wydad once again, this time away from home. Coach Miloud Hamdi and his team are enjoying their time in continental competition despite a poor campaign in their domestic league where the Algeria Ligue 1 Professionnelle club remain in the relegation zone through seventeen matches. The return of Juba Oukaci to the midfield in the team’s last match against Petro de Luanda was a boost and Salim Boukhenchouche should also be ready for the match on Saturday. JSK do have issues with finding the net so the Algerian club will fancy their chances in a low scoring encounter.
More on the match is in the links below. Group A’s other match will see DR Congo’s AS Vita Club visit Luanda for a match against Petro de Luanda with both teams competing for third position in their final match. The clubs are level on four points and are eliminated from contention for the quarterfinals.
