A potentially epic battle is on the cards as Renaissance de Berkane and Zamalek clash in the first leg at the Stade Municipal de Berkane in Morocco.
It will be the first-ever confrontation between the two north African sides when RS Berkane host Zamalek on Sunday.
The Oranges booked their place in the final after defeating CS Sfaxien 3-2 on aggregate in the semi-final earlier this month.
Goals from Kodjo Fo-Doh Laba, Omar Nemsaoui and Issoufou Dayo helped the Moroccan side reach the final for the first time in history.
Berkane will look for inspiration from midfielder Abdessamad El-Moubarki, who has been one of the best players in this year’s Confederation Cup.
Already, El- Moubarki has declared his teammates’ intentions going into the match stating that they will be going for a comfortable win in the first leg at home to make their mission easier in the second leg in Alexandria.
“We will be looking for a big win at home to make our mission easier in the second leg,” El Moubarki told Moroccan newspaper Morocco today on Wednesday.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””] “We know that Zamalek is a very good team, especially when they play at home, so we have to finish the matter in Morocco.” [/perfectpullquote]
Meanwhile, Zamalek progressed into the final after beating Tunisia’s Etoile du Sahel 1-0 on aggregate in the semi-final.
Mahmoud Kahraba scored the lone goal for the White Knights in the first leg of the semi-final at their backyard in Alexandria.
Since lifting the 2003 CAF Super Cup silverware has eluded Zamalek but now they have a chance to break that jinx and win their maiden Confederation Cup trophy.
That attempt might not be an easy one against an RS Berkane side who are yet to lose at home in the competition this season.
Zamalek will be playing Sunday match with their third choice goalkeeper Omar Salah as Mahmoud Gennesh and Emad El Sayed have ruled out of the clash due to suspension and injury respectively.
However, Gross has decided to include the three goalkeepers in the traveling squad alongside youngster Mahmoud Abdel-Monsef, who is not registered in the competition.
The Cairo giants have won the elite Champions League five times but have never won Africa’s secondary club competition.
