After five rounds of nail-biting action, the CAF Champions League group stage comes to an end with fixtures set for Friday and Saturday.
Seven out of the 16 participants have booked their spot in the quarterfinals and Afrosport brings you three fixtures that look certain to produce an exciting conclusion to this stage.
Fixture: Wydad Casablanca vs JS Kabylie
Date: Saturday, April 1
Time: 11 PM WAT
This Group A contest is a battle for the top spot as both sides have 10 points while the group’s other contestants in Petro Atletico de Luanda of Angola and AS Vita of DR Congo have been eliminated and will only be playing for pride on Saturday evening.
Kabylie are on top based on head-to-head after recording a 1-0 home win against the reigning champions in round two. Wydad will try to use home advantage and win by the minimum of a two-goal margin to take first position.
Fixture: Al Ahly vs Al Hilal Omdurman
Date: Saturday, April 1
Time: 8 PM WAT
The 10-time Champions League winners have not had a solid continental campaign by their high standards.
They currently occupy third place in Group B with seven points, three points behind Al-Hilal Omdurman who are in second place.
The runner-up spot is the best Ahly can claim as South African giants Mamelodi Sundowns are guaranteed of finishing at least second as they have 11 points from their group outings.
Al Hilal can finish top if they beat Al Ahly and bottom club Coton Sport of Cameroon – who are without any points on board – get a surprising win against the Brazilians in Pretoria.
The bigger job however is for Ahly to win Al Hilal by more than a goal margin to have the edge via head-to-head after the Sudanese outfit overcame the Egyptians 1-0 in the reverse fixture in Omdurman.
IT IS BACK! ????
The 2022/23 #TotalEnergiesCAFCL final matchday kicks-off this weekend! ????
Here are the matches of the round. ???? pic.twitter.com/Eib7Unm1ig
— TotalEnergies CAFCL – TotalEnergies CAFCC ???? (@CAFCLCC) March 30, 2023
Fixture: Esperance vs Belouizdad
Date: Saturday, April 1
Time: 11 PM WAT
This is an epic encounter that could keep viewers on the edge of their seats. Like Wydad Casablanca and JS Kabylie, this is another North African affair that is a battle for top spot.
Esperance leads Group D with 10 points, one point ahead of Belouizdad. The Tunisians had the edge with a 1-0 win when they visited Algiers in round two and use that to get another victory in front of their own supporters in Tunis.
Catch the final round of the CAF Champions League group stage LIVE on AFROSPORT TV across Nigeria, channel 730 on Free TV and stream online via Vidivu TV.
