Esperance to Face Wydad in CAF Champions League Final

Reigning Africa champions Esperance de Tunis will face Wydad Casablanca in the CAF Champions League final after they saw off TP Mazembe in their semi-final tie.

Esperance, who carried a 1-0 lead going to the Saturday’s match in Lubumbashi, booked their spot to the final, which will be played over two legs, after playing out to a goalless draw at a jam-packed Stade de Mazembe.

Wydad Casablanca, meanwhile, defeated Mamelodi Sundowns 2-1 on aggregate, after putting a strong first leg display in Morocco, although they were held to a goalless stalemate in Pretoria.

Wydad will host the first leg on May 24 with the return match between the decades-old north African rivals the following weekend.

At stake will be a $2.5 million (2.2 million euros) first prize and a place in the expanded 2021 FIFA Club World Cup.

Mohamed Youcef scored what proved to be Esperance’s winning goal in the first leg encounter in Tunisia last weekend.

For Wydad, Salheddine Saidi and Aouk Badi scored the important goals with Anele Ngcongca netting for Sundowns.

Despite a magnificent crowd in Lubumbashi, where the five-time champions have never been beaten in 45 Champions League games, winning 36 of them, Mazembe were unable to get the goal they needed to take the tie to extra time.

Esperance backline was superb for the whole minutes of the clash as they easily stopped any attack made by Mihayo Kazembe’s side.

In Pretoria, Sundowns took control of the match from the start although the visitors were able to create chances too in the early stages of the match.

Themba Zwane had an opportunity in the 63rd minute to put the Brazilians in front but his half shot from the edge of the area was easily punched away for an unfruitful corner by Wydad goalie.

The Moroccan missed a big chance to put the ball at the back of the net in the 66th minute after Babatunde applied a horrible left-footed strike from inside the area.

The two teams were facing each other again in the Champions League for the umpteenth time over the last few seasons.