Good day!
On Thursday, the Confederation of African Football conducted the preliminary-round draws for the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup.
Four Nigerian clubs discovered the roads standing between them and the group stages. As usual, the excitement was quickly joined by anxiety because every Nigerian football supporter is already asking the same question:
Which of our representatives will actually go the distance this time?
For Shooting Stars, this is not just another continental campaign. It is a long-awaited return to African club football after 22 years away.
Unfortunately, CAF did not prepare a welcome-back package for them.
The Oluyole Warriors were handed one of the toughest possible opening fixtures against Tunisian giants CS Sfaxien. It is the kind of encounter that would not look out of place in the group stage, yet one of them could be eliminated before the competition properly gets going.
Should 3SC find a way past the Tunisians, their path to the group stage becomes considerably less frightening, with AF Amadou Diallo and East End Lions looking more manageable on paper.
The immediate concern is that Shooting Stars will host the first leg.
In African knockout football, playing at home first is only an advantage when you build a healthy lead. Anything less, and you could find yourself travelling to North Africa with the match already leaning dangerously towards the opposition.
Shooting Stars must therefore make Ibadan count.
Nigeria’s other representative in the Confederation Cup, El-Kanemi Warriors, also have plenty of work ahead of them.
They begin against União Desportiva Internacional de Bissau of Guinea-Bissau, but everyone has already looked beyond that fixture and noticed the giant waiting in the next round: Raja Casablanca.
Qualifying for continental football is difficult enough. Attempting to reach the group stage through a route likely to include one of Morocco’s biggest clubs makes the assignment even more daunting.
El-Kanemi cannot afford to become distracted by Raja before dealing with UDIB. Continental football has embarrassed many teams that spent too much time preparing for the next round before completing the current one.
However, should the President Federation Cup winners navigate both hurdles and reach the group stage, it would rank among the greatest achievements in the club’s history.
In the CAF Champions League, Nigerian champions Enugu Rangers appear to have received a kinder opening fixture against Benin Republic champions SOBEMAP FC.
On paper, Rangers should progress.
But continental football has a habit of punishing teams that arrive with too much confidence and too little preparation. SOBEMAP may not possess Rangers’ history or pedigree, but champions deserve respect regardless of the country they represent.
Should the Flying Antelopes advance, the second hurdle becomes much more complicated. They are likely to face either AS Nigelec of Niger Republic or Algerian champions MC Alger.
That is the stage where Rangers’ group-stage ambitions may truly be tested.
The first round is an opportunity. The second could become a battle.
Of the four Nigerian representatives, Rivers United appear to have the clearest route.
They begin against San Pedro of Côte d’Ivoire and could then face either Uganda’s Vipers or FC Nouadhibou of Mauritania.
None of those matches will be straightforward. There are no charitable organisations operating in CAF competitions. However, when Rivers United’s path is compared with the obstacles facing Shooting Stars, Rangers and El-Kanemi, the Pride of Rivers have every reason to feel encouraged.
They also possess something many Nigerian clubs continue to underestimate: continental experience.
Rivers United have consistently appeared in CAF competitions over the last few seasons. Both the players and members of the technical crew understand the travel, difficult pitches, questionable officiating, hostile atmospheres and tactical discipline required to survive away from home.
That familiarity could prove invaluable.
Looking at all four paths, it becomes easier to understand why Nigerian supporters remain cautious despite the excitement surrounding the draws.
There is no guarantee that even two of our representatives will reach the group stages.
That reality also makes one wonder how Opta recently ranked the NPFL as the fifth-best league in Africa and the 82nd-best league in the world.
Many Nigerians questioned the rankings, but statistics are supposedly based on measurable criteria rather than emotions. If those figures truly represent the current strength of our league, then our clubs now have an opportunity to justify that reputation where it matters most.
On the pitch.
Rivers United appear best placed to reach the group stage. Their route looks less complicated, and their recent continental experience gives them an advantage that cannot be ignored.
Shooting Stars also have a genuine opportunity, but almost everything depends on surviving CS Sfaxien. Beat the Tunisians, and the road suddenly begins to open.
Rangers must resist the temptation to start preparing for MC Alger before dealing with SOBEMAP. Overlooking the Beninese champions would be a foolish and potentially expensive mistake.
As for El-Kanemi Warriors, they may need every ounce of belief available—and perhaps the spirit of Mai Idris Alooma himself—to overcome UDIB and the likely obstacle of Raja Casablanca.
As always, we wish all four Nigerian representatives success.
Their victories will not belong to their clubs alone. Every continental win earns valuable coefficient points, improves Nigeria’s standing in African football and strengthens our chances of retaining four places in future CAF competitions.
The country cannot continue boasting about the size and history of its league while its clubs disappear before the group stages.
This is the moment for Rangers, Rivers United, Shooting Stars and El-Kanemi Warriors to carry the flag and give Nigerian football something positive to celebrate.
For now, all we can do is believe.
Hope may not win football matches.
But sometimes, it is where every memorable continental journey begins.
EnyimbaEnyi
