CAF Confederation Cup: Raja Casablanca travel to Nigeria with key players sidelined by injuries

Raja Casablanca will be without several players as they prepare to face Nigeria’s El Kanemi Warriors in the first leg of the second preliminary round of the CAF Confederation Cup on Sunday.

The Moroccan side travelled to Nigeria on Friday hoping to secure a positive result before the return leg in Casablanca, but coach Paco Gimiz continues to face selection problems because of injuries within his squad.

Five players have been affected by the situation, with the availability of some remaining uncertain ahead of the two-legged continental tie.

Agbekeburnu among confirmed absentees

Ghanaian midfielder Mikael Agbekeburnu will miss both legs against El Kanemi Warriors because of a hamstring injury, depriving Raja of his services throughout the tie.

Adel Baltaib has also been ruled out after suffering a connective muscle injury that is expected to keep him sidelined for between seven and 10 days.

Ayoub El Amloud will miss Sunday’s first leg because of a thigh injury, although a return for the second leg remains possible.

Meanwhile, uncertainty continues over Adam Nafati, who remains unavailable because of an injury. No official clarification has been provided about the nature of the injury or when it occurred.

Nafati did not feature in any of Raja’s pre-season friendly matches and has also missed the club’s first three official matches, leaving his return date unclear.

Al-Zaidani returns to training

There was some positive news for the Raja technical staff, with Ishaq Al-Zaidani recovering and returning to training.

His return comes as Gimiz works to manage the available options ahead of the first meeting with the Nigerian side.

The coach will hope to navigate the injury setbacks as Raja seek to progress through the preliminary rounds and continue their campaign in the competition.

Raja target positive result in Nigeria

Raja are scheduled to face El Kanemi Warriors on Sunday, 18 October, at Remo Stars Stadium in Ikeni, Nigeria.

The return leg will take place at the Mohammed V Sports Complex in Casablanca on Friday, 23 October.

The Moroccan club will look to draw on its experience and history in African competitions to overcome the Nigerian opponents. Raja have won the CAF Confederation Cup twice, in 2018 and 2021.