Mamelodi Sundowns claimed a vital 1-0 home win over Al Ahly in the first leg of their African Football League semi-final in Pretoria on Sunday.
A second-half shot from Thapelo Maseko sealed victory for the South Africans, who largely bossed proceedings against the Egyptian giants at Loftus Versfeld Stadium.
The single goal gives them a slender advantage ahead of Wednesday's second leg in Cairo, with Al Ahly needing to score at least two goals to progress.
Coach Rhulani Mokwena says he is satisfied with his team’s performance and set to do battle when they storm Al Ahly on home turf.
Meanwhile, Al Ahly coach Marcel Kohler insists his side can still reach the African Football League final, blaming the first-leg defeat on a lapse in concentration.
"We have a chance to qualify, and I believe the Cairo match will decide everything. We played a good first half defensively but lacked calmness. In the second half, we conceded after an error,’’ Kohler told reporters after the game.
Wydad Casablanca vs. Esperance
Elsewhere, a second-half goal from Hicham Bousfiane earned Morocco's Wydad Casablanca a 1-0 home victory over Tunisian side Esperance in the first leg of their semi-final encounter in the African Football League also on Sunday.
Bousfiane found the breakthrough just before the hour mark at Stade Mohamed V, as Wydad claimed a slender advantage to take into Wednesday's return fixture in Tunis.
The 1-0 victory represents a small measure of revenge for Wydad after their 2018 TotalEnergies Champions League final loss to Esperance.
"Praise be to God, we scored a positive result and controlled the match for 90 minutes," Casablanca coach Adel Ramzi told the BBC after the game.
Ramzi, however, acknowledged that his team's efficiency must improve in the second leg to finish the job.
Esperance coach Tarek Thabet, on his part, believes his side can still reach the African Football League final despite losing in the first leg.
Thabet believes Esperance showed enough quality to turn the tie around on home soil when they host the Moroccans on Wednesday night.
"The players made a great and correct effort. Our players gave a strong performance. There is still the second leg in Tunisia, and we can repeat the scenario against TP Mazembe," he said, citing their quarter-final fightback, which saw them defeat Mazembe after losing 1-0 in the first leg.
