CAF Champions League – First Round
KCCA FC 1-1 Petro de Luanda
StarTimes Stadium, Lugogo
Friday, 27-09-2019
LUGOGO – KCCA FC were eliminated from the 2019/20 CAF Champions League after drawing 1-1 with Angolan side Petro de Luanda on Friday afternoon.
The Kasasiros who came into the game full of confidence after drawing 0-0 away from home, could not get the job done in the end.
Petro de Luanda opened the scoring through Ricardo Estevao penalty after Isaac Mensah was brought down in the area by KCCA FC custodian Charles Lukwago.
Mustapha Kizza equalized for the home side early in the second half but they could not find the elusive second goal that would have seen them storm the group stages.
The result means the Kasasiros now drop into the CAF Confederations Cup where they will play in the playoff round for a spot in the group stages.
For Petro de Luanda, they automatically enter the group stages of the CAF Champions League.
KCCA take long to get started, pay dearly
KCCA FC head coach Mike Mutebi described the first leg result (0-0) as a complicated score for his side and it looked to have haunted the players early in the game as they were neither attacking or defending.
They however created two half chances in the opening ten minutes.
First Nunda hesitated to shoot while through on goal and then Okello mis-controlled Muzamir Mutyaba’s lobbed pass and the ball went out for just a throw in.
Okello then forced a low save from Elder Delgado after he was teed up by Herbert Achai.
The second half saw KCCA an improved side, creating better chances.
Mike Mutyaba volleyed Filbert Obenchan’s pin-point accurate cross over with Delgado struggling.
After a slick-passing move, Kizza dragged an effort wide from a promising position.
However, he would not be denied twice as he hammered in the leveler on 57 minutes after pouncing on a lose ball just inside the area.
The left-back could have doubled his and KCCA’s day’s tally moments later but his free kick was tipped over for just a corner by the alert Delgado.
From the resultant corner, Mutyaba headed just over.
KCCA’s best chance to win it fell to substitute Sadat Anaku but he failed to connect with Mutyaba’s fierce low drive while inches away from the goal-line.
Inside the last 10 minutes, KCCA saw two penalty appeals waved away by the referee, both after defender Diogenes Joao looked to have handled in the forbidden area.
In the end it was Petro de Luanda smiling into the lucrative group stages of the competition while it was an end to what promised to be an exiting campaign for the Kasasiros.
Petro de Luanda see out professional performance
Petro are only making their first appearance in the Champions League since 2010.
After seeing off Lesotho’s Matlama in the previous round, they knew they would have to perform at their best against KCCA FC.
Balancing both defending and attacking, Isaac Mensah shoot over after picking a poor clearance by Lukwago.
Sengui Hermenegildo then saw a deflected cross tipped over for just corner.
Midway through the first half, Ricardo Estevao had a shot pushed out for another corner by Lukwago.
Late in the second half, Mensah nearly puts game to bed but his effort saved out for corner by Lukwago.
Starting teams
KCCA FC
Charles Lukwago (GK), Filbert Obenchan, Peter Magambo, Samuel Kato, Mustapha Kizza, Gift Ali, Herbert Achai, Allan Okello, Jackson Nunda, Muzamir Mutyaba, Mike Mutyaba.
Petro de Luanda
Elder Delgado (GK), Sengui Hermengildo, Insua Musah, Diogenes Joao, Silas Satonho, Ricardo Quibeto, Augusto Carneiro, Wilson Gaspar, Isaac Mensah, Alberto Miguel, Jorge Caneiro.
