Raja Casablanca will chase a quarterfinal berth in the CAF Confederation Cup when they face hosts Aduana Stars at Stade Mohammed V in Morocco on Wednesday, August 28. The match will kick-off at 15h00 CAT.
The Green Eagles come into the match after a 2-0 loss away to DR Congo’s AS Vita on August 19 in a result that left the Moroccan giants second on Group A log with 8 points. They will need nothing but a win to advance in the last eight.
Their coach Juan Carlos Garrido is expected to field his best squad for the most important game, but there is one player whom Raja fans have identified as crucial to the team’s hope of making it to the next stage of the second most prestigious tournament in African club football.
Mohmoud Benhalib is a man on form. The centre-forward was not at his best in his team’s recent encounter against the Congolese outfit, AS Vita, but still produced a man-of-the-match performance despite the Green Eagles’ loss.
The 22-year-old netted a brace in the first-leg 3-3 draw against Aduana that was played away at Agyeman Badu Stadium in Ghana. He threw himself at the ball after ten minutes and powered it into the net for his first goal of the tournament.
The Ogya defenders must be fondly remembering the youngster’s superb combination of strength, skill, and guile as he easily added his second in the 63rd minute, proving that he is one of the outstanding talents on African soil.
And on matchday four of the competition, the forward was at it again as he scored another brace during Raja’s 4-0 romping of Ivory Coast’s ASEC Mimosas, sending his tally in the tourney soaring to five making him the leading Confederation Cup scorer.
So far he is the man leading the competition scoring charts with five goals.
Looking at his goal scoring record, one will agree that the Moroccan has become a master in this area as he has developed to become dangerous with set-pieces outside the box.
Considering that the last season’s top scorer was Mbabane Swallows striker Sabelo Ndinzinisia with five goals, Benhalib is poised to surpass that if he scores tonight.
For those who have watched him, it will be easy for him to score more goals as Aduana who have made the trip to the North African country for formality sake.
Latest reports indicate that the Ghanaian side which is under the tutelage of Japanese tactician Yenichi Yatsuhashi traveled with only 14 players – a situation that will worsen their already bad situation.
The hopes of one of the biggest clubs in North Africa will be pinned on one man and Benhalib will be well aware that this could be his best chance to claim the golden boot and perhaps shape up for a move to Europe.
The 1.8m tall forward was tasked with carrying the weight on his shoulders in team training session on Monday and come tomorrow he will be tasked with carrying a lot more.
His performance will definitely increase the three-time CAF Champions League winners’ chances of becoming the fourth Moroccan team to win the CAF Confederations Cup.
