The final group stage match for the year 2024 in the CAF Champions League features hosts Al Ahly locking horns with Algeria's CR Belouizdad on Sunday (16:00 GMT) in Group C. This will be the only match of the weekend from the Champions League, postponed to Sunday due to Al Ahly's participation in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup last weekend.
Here is how Group C looks before the match:
Games Played | Points | |
| 3 | 5 |
| 2 | 4 |
| 2 | 3 |
| 3 | 1 |
Al Ahly
Last weekend was a bitter pill to swallow for Ahly supporters who thought their club would be facing Real Madrid in the Intercontinental Cup final only to watch Ahly lose to Mexico's Pachuca in a dramatic penalty kick shootout. Ahly know the value of moving on without thinking about past results and after apologizing to their supporters the team and head coach Marcel Koller are on to preparing for CRB. Koller indicated that Sunday's match will be an opportunity to restore the confidence of the fans.
The reality remains that Ahly have not scored in three consecutive matches, a concerning trend. Striker Wessam Abou Ali has been ineffective since returning from injury and the group of supporting wingers led by Hussein El Shahat have not produced. After a spell marked by injury and illness, Percy Tau may make a return to the starting eleven after Taher Mohamed's absence was announced. Omar Kamal is the only notable absence in the defense for Ahly.
CR Belouizdad
For CRB, the 2024-25 season promised high ambitions and after a very poor start the club is finding its form in Algeria's Ligue 1 since the appointment of veteran coach Abdelkader Amrani. However, it appears that there is not a good relationship between Amrani and Algeria national team all-time leading scorer Islam Slimani who has only played eight minutes over the last three matches. Slimani's last start came in the Champions League Group C defeat to Orlando Pirates and since then the 36-year-old is out of Amrani's plans.
Slimani's discontent appears to be inevitable considering the surplus of options Amrani has. Aymen Mahious is more than capable of producing goals and South African signing Khanyisa Mayo continues to find his form in North Africa. CRB have won four consecutive matches in domestic league play and their strong defense led by veteran players Chouaib Keddad and Houcine Benayada will create a difficult obstacle for the struggling Ahly attack to break down.
Comments