The CAF Champions League’s first preliminary round continued on Saturday, delivering impressive away victories for Tanzania’s Young Africans and Morocco’s Raja Casablanca, positioning both teams advantageously for advancement in the competition.
Young Africans demonstrated their dominance with a commanding 4-0 victory over Burundi’s Vital’O in Dar es Salaam.
The Tanzanian giants wasted no time in asserting their control, with Prince Dube opening the scoring early.
Clatous Chama then doubled the lead, followed by Cement Mzize and Stephane Aziz Ki, who added further goals to secure a comprehensive win.
This dominant performance leaves Young Africans in a strong position as they head into the second leg, already eyeing a spot in the next round.
Meanwhile, Raja Casablanca faced a more challenging contest but emerged with a vital 2-1 win against AS GNN in Niamey, Niger.
The Moroccan side took the lead through Sabir Bougrine’s 20th-minute strike. However, AS GNN responded quickly, leveling the match before halftime through Koubino.
Despite the setback, Raja’s resilience shone through in the second half, with Marouane Zila netting the decisive goal midway through the period to ensure a narrow victory.
Raja’s away win gives them a crucial advantage as they prepare for the return leg at home.
In other matches across the continent, Namibia’s African Stars secured a narrow 1-0 victory over Botswana’s Jwaneng Galaxy in Gaborone.
Willy Stephanus scored the match’s only goal early on, giving African Stars a slight edge heading into the second leg.
Zimbabwe’s Ngezi Platinum and DR Congo’s AS Maniema Union played out a goalless draw in Lusaka, leaving their tie finely balanced.
Angola’s Sagrada Esperanca also managed an important 1-0 away win against Saint Louis Suns United of the Seychelles, with Dabanda scoring in the second half to secure the win.
In a fiercely contested East African derby, Ethiopia’s Commercial Bank of Ethiopia defeated Uganda’s SC Villa 2-1 in Kampala. The match saw SC Villa reduced to 10 men, further tilting the balance in favor of the visitors.
West Africa saw a series of tightly contested matches, with three derbies ending in draws.
In Bamako, AS Douanes of Burkina Faso were held to a 0-0 draw by Benin’s Coton FC.
In Sierra Leone, Bo Rangers and Ivory Coast’s San Pedro played to a 1-1 draw at Bo Stadium.
Similarly, Stade Abidjan of Ivory Coast was held 1-1 by Senegal’s Teungueth FC in the Ivorian capital.
The day’s final match in Benghazi, Libya, also ended in a stalemate, with Al Nasr and Sudan’s Al Merrikh playing out a 0-0 draw, leaving everything to play for in the return leg.
The preliminary round action continues on Sunday, with several notable fixtures on the schedule.
South Africa’s Orlando Pirates will be in action against Madagascar’s Disciples FC, while Algeria’s CR Belouizdad faces AC Leopards of the Congo.
Egypt’s Pyramids FC will travel to Zanzibar to take on JKU, and Nigeria’s Enugu Rangers and Remo Stars are set to meet US Zilimadjou of Comoros and Morocco’s AS FAR, respectively.
These matches will continue to shape the journey toward the CAF Champions League group stages, as teams strive to assert their dominance in Africa’s premier club competition.
