***TP Mazembe aims for victory
By Harry Awurumibe, Editor, Abuja Bureau
It is a decision day in Group A of the ongoing Confederation of African Football Women’s Champions League (CAF WCL) as one-time winners AS FAR Rabat battles the rejuvenated University of Western Cape (UWC) women’s team from South Africa in the final match of Group A at Stade Ben Ahmed El Abdi in El Jadida tonight at the same time Senegalese’s
Aigles de la Medina will take on TP Mazembe at Stade Larbi Zaouli also in Casablanca to determine two clubs that will qualify for the semi final stage of the competition.
The two semi-finalists from Group A tonight will be joined by the top two finishers in tomorrow’s last Group B matches between Edo Queens versus defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa and the second game involving FC Masar and Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) respectively to form the semi-final quartet.
Already, tournament hosts, AS FAR have one foot in the semi-final stage with maximum six points while their opponents UWC and TP Mazembe are the other two sides in contention as both have three points apiece with Aigles De La Medina already out of competition after losing two earlier matches.
The Moroccan champions need to avoid heavy defeat in the hands of UWC who were beaten 2-0 in the opening match by TP Mazembe last weekend before they bounced back in the last match to defeat Aigles de la Médina by same margin. The debutantes are not expected to trouble the home team that will have the backing of their vociferous fans in the stands.
However, speaking ahead of this tie, AS FAR coach, Mohamed Amin Alioua said the only time they will start thinking about the semi-final is after they beat dangerous UWC.
Said he: “We will enter the match against UWC with the ambition to win. Everyone knows the situation of our team; our options are limited, so we count on a group of players capable of winning. Then, we will think about the semi-final”.
Elsewhere, TP Mazembe on paper has an easier task against already eliminated Aigles de la Médina as they may not have anything to fight for but prestige, although these two teams have one thing in common; both suffered at least one defeat in the group stage.
The Congolese TP Mazembe were subjected to a 3-1 loss to hosts AS FAR in their second match of the competition while Aigles de La Medina fell to a 2-0 defeat against fellow debutantes UWC and 3-0 hammering by AS FAR in the opening match last Saturday.
Both teams will be eyeing a win tonight with TP Mazembe eyeing a place in the semi-final if they can secure victory while the Senegalese side will play for pride in their quest to bow out of the competition on high by securing at least a victory in three matches.
Prompt News reports that Aigles de la Medina coach, Mbayang Thiam who spoke to the media ahead of the clash said: “We are competitors who came here as regional champions. It is a status that we must defend, and we want to prove that we are capable of winning. We may be out, but nothing stops us from putting up a good performance in our last match”.
TP Mazembe on the other hand are aiming to advance from the group stages for the first time. Their last appearance, which was in the 2022 edition saw them bow out in the group stages – something that TP Mazembe defender, Michelle Moumazim aims to change.
Said she: “Our goal is to rewrite the history of our club. We want to go further than our finish in 2022. We are well prepared for this match and fully understand how difficult it will be”.
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