USM Alger will be confident of winning the CAF Confederation Cup when they host Young Africans for the second leg of the final, set for Stade du 5 Juillet in Algiers on the evening of Saturday 3 June 2023.<\/p>\n
The first leg at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam this past Sunday saw the Algerian visitors claim a 2-1 away win: USMA claimed the lead in the first half via Aymen Mahious, before the Tanzanian hosts equalised via Kalala Mayele late on, only for Islam Merili to secure victory with an immediate reply.<\/p>\n
Yanga are very much the underdogs in their pursuit of a first continental title \u2013 they need to win by two clear goals or by a 2-1 score line to force extra time \u2013 but coach Nasreddine Nabbi holds genuine hope that they can turn the tie around and lift the CAFCC trophy in the Algerian capital.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are 90 minutes left and as long as we still have this chance, there is an opportunity,\u201d said the Tunisian tactician.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is difficult but not impossible. I can\u2019t promise the supporters that I\u2019m going to come back with the Cup. But I say, we will fight to turn the tide. We have the means to do this because we have already proven it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nabbi\u2019s hope springs from Yanga\u2019s attacking prowess, which saw them create several chances against the USMA defence.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe saw that despite the fact that USM Alger is very compact defensively, we managed to create a lot of chances,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had almost 62 percent possession of the ball against a compact defence and very aggressive players in duels. This is why I say that nothing is finished. On top of that, we have the culture of scoring away from home.\u201d<\/p>\n
USMA, meanwhile, can even afford to lose 1-0 in this match and still win the final on the away goals rule, but coach Abdelhak Benchikha insists that his side will not fall into complacency as they also chase a first continental triumph.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing is done yet. The game still remains 50-50. I have experience with these kind of matches as a coach,\u201d said the Algerian.<\/p>\n
\u201cYanga will come to Algeria with nothing to lose and we have to remain focused. Yes, we have a small step from the first leg but I know how things can change and we should not lose focus. We will keep working.\u201d<\/p>\n
USMA are looking to become the first Algerian team to win the CAFCC, with ES Setif, MO Bejaia and JS Kabylie all having lost in their respective final appearances in 2009, 2016 and 2021.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
USM Alger will be confident of winning the CAF Confederation Cup when they host Young Africans for the second leg of the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":50,"featured_media":77593,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[52,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-81587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport-fr","category-sport"],"yoast_head":"\n