The fierce rivalry between DR Congo duo, TP Mazembe and AS Vita Club takes another turn when the two sides face-off in this weekend’s Orange CAF Champions League Group A encounter in Lubumbashi.
The two sides, famed for their age-long rivalry in Congolese football, a headline fixture in the national championship (Linafoot), have now taken the contest to probably the biggest platform in African football.
Matches between the two teams always bring activities in the cities of Lubumbashi and Kinshasa to a halt, with their dyed-in-the-wool fans moving helter-skelter to be a part of the game either at the stadium or on television. A staggering 26 leagues been won by the two clubs, with 12 of them in favour of AS Vita.
For the first time, the rivalry gets a continental dimension on Sunday, 25 May 2014 when Mazembe hosts AS Vita in the group phase day two clash at the TP Mazembe Stadium in Lubumbashi.
Almost a fortnight ago, the two sides met the last time in the final day of the national championship, which Les Corbeaux won 1-0 thanks to Ghana-import Gladson Awako’s 35 minute strike to clinch their 14th league title. However, incidents after the match will attract global attention for the wrong reasons after 15 persons died and over 20 injured as a result of a stampede at the Tata Raphael Stadium in the Congolese capital.
AS Vita, nicknamed ‘Les Dauphins Noirs’ meaning ‘The Black Dolphins’ are still bitter about the defeat which automatically rules them out of participating in next year’s CAF Champions League, and will be seeking to force a bitter pill down the throats of their rivals at their own backyard.
Unlike Mazembe, the Kinshasa-based club, debuting at the mini-league stage club began their campaign on a winning note after a 2-1 win over Zamalek last Sunday. It was a false start for Les Corbeaux, four-time winners, who tumbled in Khartoum after a 1-0 loss to Sudanese torchbearers, Al Hlal.
There is mounting pressure on Mazembe coach Patrice Carteron and his charges to deliver a good result to turnaround their fortunes. Any result other than the three points will mean no good to the chances of the Congolese champions, eyeing their first continental title in four years.
AS Vita have made their inexperience at this stage count for little and in offensive midfielder Firmin Mubel Ndombe, they have one of the potent goal-scorers in the competition. Ndombe, who scored his fifth goal of the campaign in the 2-1 win against Zamalek, will surely pose a lot of threat to the Mazembe backline and captain Joel Kimwaki must rally his colleagues to neutralize the effect of the pacy winger.
The only continental success for AS Vita was in 1973, when the competition was christened ‘African Cup of Champions Clubs’ but defender Abdoul Aziz Djielbeogo believes the current squad can replicate that feat, sending a warning out to Mazembe that they cannot stand their way and that aspiration.
“We are working very hard every day to improve our level. We need massive support of our fans to achieve our goals,” the Burkinabe was quoted by the club’s official website.
In the other Group A match, Zamalek will be hoping for their first point of the campaign against Hilal on Saturday in Cairo.
In Group B, Ahly Benghazi of Libya will host Esperance of Tunisia in Sfax on Saturday whilst Algeria’s Entente Setif battles CS Sfaxien of Tunisia on Sunday in Setif.
Fixtures
Group A
24-05-2014 Zamalek (Egypt) vs Al Hilal (Sudan)
25-05-2014 TP Mazembe (DR Congo) vs AS Vita (DR Congo)
Group B
24-05-2014 Ahly Benghazi (Tunisia) vs Esperance (Tunisia)
25-05-2014 Entente Sétif (Algeria) vs CS Sfaxien (Tunisia)
Confederation of African Football (CAF) News
Support InfoStride News' Credible Journalism: Only credible journalism can guarantee a fair, accountable and transparent society, including democracy and government. It involves a lot of efforts and money. We need your support. Click here to Donate