Matchday 3 of the 2021 CAF Confederation Cup saw Enyimba FC moving to the top of their group as Raja Casablanca made it 3 wins out of 3 in Group D.

 

 

Group A

Group A saw a new team move to the top of the table as Nigerian giants Enyimba FC moved to the top of the table with a 2-1 win over Algerian Ligue 1 leaders ES Setif in Aba.

Goals from Augustine Oladapo and Tosin Omoleye gave the Aba Warriors an important victory to finish the midway point of the group stages on top by 1 point.

The other Group A game saw Libyan side Al-Ahly Benghazi managing to hold South African powerhouse Orlando Pirates to a 0-0 draw to stay in the hunt for qualification in a really challenging group that is tough to call at the moment.

A draw meant that both sides missed out on an opportunity to go top of the table. The 1 point means that Orlando have now dropped from the top into 2nd following Enyimba’s win. Al-Ahly Benghazi now move onto 4 points from their 3 games to stay 1 point behind the South Africans and 2 points off the top.

The top 2 teams from each group will  qualify for the knockout stages.

This is how Group A stands after matchday 3 of the 2021 CAF Confederation Cup.

  1. Enyimba (Nigeria) – 6 points
  2. Orlando Pirates (South Africa) – 5 points
  3. Al-Ahly Benghazi (Libya) – 4 points
  4. ES Setif (Algeria) – 1 point

Group B

It was different fortunes for the other Algerian side in the competition as JS Kabylie managed to pick up a massive point away from home when they faced defending Confederation Cup champions RS Berkane in Morocco.

JS Kabylie midfielder Malik Raiah was sent off but the Algerians managed to hold onto the draw by keeping a clean sheet. This point means that they stay ahead of the current holders by 1 point and if things stay like this going into the second half of the group stages then we would see the champions being knocked out early.

Cameroon’s Coton Sport moved to the top of the table with an away win against struggling Zambian side NAPSA Stars. Abdouraman Daman Bouba scored the decisive goal to give his team a well-deserved 1-0 victory in Lusaka.

This is how Group B stands at the moment.

  1. Coton Sport (Cameroon) – 6 points
  2. JS Kabylie (Algeria) – 5 points
  3. RS Berkane (Morocco) – 4 points
  4. NAPSA Stars (Zambia) – 1 point

Group C

In Group C, it was a clash of the Tunisian clubs that highlighted the group as Etoile du Sahel faced off against CS Sfaxien in Rades, Tunisia.

Both teams cancelled out each other and the game ended in a 0-0 stalemate that sees both teams maintain their positions in the group.

CS Sfaxien stay at the top of the table, 1 point ahead of their national rivals Etoile du Sahel.

It was, however, the other game in the group that has significantly changed the dynamics of this group. Senegalese side ASC Jaraaf managed to pick up 3 vital points by beating Burkinabe club Salitas 2-0 at the Stade Lat Dior in Thies, Senegal.

This win took Jaraaf level on points with Etoile du Sahel but they are behind the Tunisians on goal difference.

Here are the Group C standings after matchday 3.

  1. CS Sfaxien (Tunisia) – 5 points
  2. Etoile du Sahel (Tunisia) – 4 points
  3. Jaraaf (Senegal) – 4 points
  4. Salitas (Burkina Faso)

Group D

Group D features the only team with the perfect record so far in the group stage – Raja Casablanca.

The 2018 CAF Confederation Cup winners made easy work of Egyptian side Pyramids FC at the Stade Mohammed V in Casablanca as they won 2-0 to end the first half of the group stages with 3 wins out of 3.

 

 

A Sherif Ekframy own goal in the 15th minute followed by a 21st minute goal by DR Congo’s Ben Malango, secured the victory for the home side as the 2 heavyweights of the group clashed after winning both of their games prior to their meeting.

Pyramids stay 2nd in the group, now 3 points behind leaders Raja.

In the other Group D game, it was the match between the 2 sides that lost their opening 2 games by losing to Pyramids and Raja Casablanca.

Namungo stay without a point after losing to Nkana FC. The in-form Diamond Chikwekwe secured the victory for the traveling Zambian club.

The Tanzanians failed to use home advantage as they lost 1-0 in Dar es Salaam against the Red Devils. This keeps Namungo winless as Nkana keep their hopes alive in qualification, now 3 points behind 2nd placed Pyramids.

Here is how Group D looks.

  1. Raja Casablanca (Morocco) – 9 points
  2. Pyramids (Egypt) – 6 points
  3. Nkana (Zambia) – 3 points
  4. Namungo (Tanzania) – 0 points