2021 CAFCL Group Stage Preview

It is that time again! For the last 3 years, I have predicted the winner of the CAF Champions League tournament. The kind folks at Esperance have been so nice to me since calling for their back-to-back titles in 2018 and 2019. I had to call for Zamalek to win last year’s event as much as it pained me to do so LoL … Obviously, Ahly came away with last year’s title so I missed that call.

So, as I said, it is that time again to offer up my predictions for this year’s event now that the clubs have reached the group stage. First of all, let’s reveal the four groups and the opening round fixtures coming up.

Groupings

A
Al Ahly (Egy)
Al-Merreikh (Sud)
AS Vita Club (Drc)
Simba (Tan)

B
Mamelodi Sundowns (Rsa)
Al-Hilal Omdurman (Sud)
Mazembe (Drc)
CR Belouizdad (Alg)

C
Horoya (Gui)
Petro Atletico (Ang)
Wydad (Mar)
Kaizer Chiefs (Rsa)

D
Zamalek (Egy)
MC Alger (Alg)
Esperance Tunis (Tun)
Teungueth (Sen)
_________________________________________

Opening Round Matches

12.02.21
Horoya (Gui)
Vs
Petro Atletico (Ang)

12.02.21
AS Vita Club (Drc)
Vs
Simba (Tan)

12.02.21
Zamalek (Egy)
Vs
MC Alger (Alg)

13.02.21
Esperance Tunis (Tun)
Vs
Teungueth (Sen)

13.02.21
Mazembe (Drc)
Vs
CR Belouizdad (Alg)

13.02.21
Mamelodi Sundowns (Rsa)
Vs
Al-Hilal Omdurman (Sud)

13.02.21
Wydad (Mar)
Vs
Kaizer Chiefs (Rsa)

16.02.21
Al Ahly (Egy)
Vs
Al-Merreikh (Sud)
______________________________________

There are a lot of familiar squads that we are used to seeing recently reach the group stage. We also have a few new faces that have not been to this point of the tournament for some years, if at all.

Clubs such as CR Belouizdad from Algeria have not been back to this event since their 2002 first-round exit. The Kaizer Chiefs from South Africa are making their debut at the CAFCL group stage, and they did it in dramatic fashion too. (Link to article about their first-ever advancement to Group Stage)
Teungueth out of Senegal will also be making their CAFCL debut after taking out Raja Casablanca, who we are used to seeing in the group stage in recent years.

The rest of the field we are accustomed to seeing reach the group stage, as they all have been to this point of the event within the last 5 years.

Naturally, Esperance has my attention again. Not only because they sent me a customized #10 team jersey with my name on the back, but because of the way they are playing currently. Expectations are high for THE HOPE as they should be! Yes, I am a fan of the team but I do not use my bias to make predictions. Learning how to separate emotion from predicting outcomes of sporting events is pivotal. Everyone wants their favorite squad to always win, but if it was that easy? LoL (Ha, I wish!)

So, what can we expect to see this year?

I think we all just want to make sure everyone stays healthy amid this horrible pandemic that is running through our planet. Hopefully, they will play the entire tournament without any cancelations as well.

The toughest team to get past this season will be Al Ahly. I watched their Champions Club Cup match against Bayern Munich this past week, and they put up quite a fight against arguably the best club on planet earth at the moment. You might argue that point, but if Bayern hoists one more trophy this year their showcase will be filled with 5 cups in a calendar year.

Ahly should still gain some confidence from that 2 – 0 loss against Bayern regardless of the scoreline. So many pundits were unaware of how good Ahly is and I saw plenty of Bayern backers losing money because they don’t know enough about African football.

Obviously, Ahly is the defending Champion of the CAFCL as they try to do what Esperance recently did by taking consecutive titles. That is not easy to do, although we all hated how Esperance earned that 2019 trophy.
The match never even finished and VAR (or lack thereof) was certainly to blame. Was the match fixed? Was the ref being fair? That goal being called off for Wydad certainly doesn’t sit well with a lot of folks. Ahhhhhh! As a purist, I really hope that was not the case but we all know there is always a concern like that when something goes down the way it did.

Anyway, let’s hope fair play and honesty prevail this time around, somehow, someway!
I personally think that Al Ahly or Esperance will be the title holders this time around.

However, I am going on a limb and once again predicting that Esperance goes on to hoist the hardware in 2021. That could mean 3 titles from the last 4 tournaments. Not too shabby!

I personally love this year’s squad and Esperance is certainly off to a nice start in their Ligue 1 campaign this year. With a smile and support from my friends in Tunisia, I call for ESPERANCE to once again be title holders in 2021! The Hope!

**Note
Ej will be giving out plays/tips all throughout the group stage and right through the finals. If you are interested in any of that.

Good luck, God Speed, but dude don’t get pulled over LoL

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