Ghana’s Medeama SC is set for an epic showdown with continental giants, Al Ahly, of Egypt in a CAF Champions League encounter slated for the Baba Yara Sports Stadium in Kumasi.
The visitors are the defending champions and appear on course to stage a successful defence, having leapt to the summit of the table with six points after four rounds of matches.
They held Wydad Casablanca to a 1-1 draw in the return fixture played in Casablanca in addition to a 2-1 win in Cairo in the previous leg to emerge deserved champions.
And with a record extending 11th African crown, Ahly are still motivated to build on the continental gains by staging a defence of the title.
But the next on their way is a Medeama side that languish at the bottom with four points and in a dire need of the rewards to boost their campaign.
Ahly lead with an opening day 3-0 defeat over the Ghanaians in Egypt plus three successive draws in their subsequent matches.
Medeama, although, started poorly and managed to bounce back with a surprise win over CR Belouizdad at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, and a 1-1 draw against Tanzania’s Young Africans at the same venue.
With the rest of their games, apart from today’s tie, slated for ‘enemy’ soil, it leaves a tall order for the ‘Yellow and Mauves’ considering the strength of the teams at home.
After the Ahly tie, Medeama face trips to Algeria to play CR Belouizdad and Tanzania to face Young Africans; these are games that could affect the confidence of Medeama followers.
But today’s game offers a realistic chance for them to not just revive their campaign but overtake the Egyptians and find the motivation to defy the odds in the rest of the matches.
In Kumasi, the predictable sparse crowd would be expected to cheer the team on to halt the experienced Egyptians whose late request for a postponement of the match due to flight challenges was rejected by the Medeama’s board.
BY ANDREW NORTEY
