Al Hilal counting on dark night to trounce Homeboyz in Confederation Cup return leg

Photo credit: Raymond Makhaya

Al Hilal counting on dark night to trounce Homeboyz in Confederation Cup return leg

Mark Kinyanjui 10:30 - 23.08.2023

The return leg will be played at 9:00 PM EAT, a time of day Homeboyz have never played a match before.

Al Hilal head coach Mohamed Ouda believes that playing the second leg of their Confederation Cup fixture against Kakamega Homeboyz at night is ‘a good condition’ that will give them an edge and enable them to qualify for the second round against Rwanda’s Rayon Sport.

Al Hilal played the first fixture at 3:00 PM away at the Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi, Kenya and were able to force a draw, which turned the tie in their favor when they will play hosts to the Mozzart Bet Cup winners in Tripoli next Sunday.

“The weather in  Libya is kind of the same as the one we played on Saturday. 30-35 degrees in Libya,” Ouda said after the match.

“We will play at eight o’clock (9:00 PM EAT) in Libya. Good conditions and everything will be okay (for us).”

Ouda insists his team were disadvantaged in the first leg because it was the first game they played ahead of the new season, having only started training 10 days before the match.

“There is a main problem for our team. The Libyan league ended two months ago, so we returned to training just ten days ago before this match.

“It was difficult physically as a result because we found it hard but in the second leg because we have only played one leg there in Libya.”

Ouda has warned his charges not to be complacent when they face Homeboyz in the second leg on Sunday.

“I told the boys ‘do not be happy’ because there is another leg in Libya and there is a lot to do.”

The winning side will face Rwanda’s Rayon Sport in the second preliminary round, with the winners then preceding to qualify for the group stages of Africa’s second tier Continental competition.

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