Six-time winners Al Ahly of Egypt are looking to add one more trophy to their cabinet as they take on RS Berkane of Morocco in the CAF Super Cup title clash, to be played today at Doha's Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium.
The match kicks off at 7:00pm. Al Ahly, winners of the African Champions League, will be clear favourites in the blockbuster clash, but the Confederation Cup winners RS Berkane will not be easy prey.
RS Berkane coach Juan Pedro Benali said they are prepared to face the feisty Al Ahly attack. "We respect Al Ahly much, but there is no place for fear. This is a football game, and we have our chances too. We need to be ready for any scenario and will be prepared for everything," Benali said during a prematch press conference yesterday.
"This is a final between two big teams. We know Al Ahly very well and they are one of the biggest teams in Africa. But this is a football game that would be played on the pitch and we are waiting for it. "This is a different competition from the domestic one. In the league we had many injured and fatigued players.
But now we had enough time to prepare for this game," Benali said. The Spaniard, who had a short stint with Al Gharafa, said he is impressed with Qatar's efforts as the country prepares to host next FIFA World Cup.
"I spent some time as a coach here in Qatar, and the country is doing great efforts towards hosting sports events and I believe they are ready to host a historical World Cup. We are happy to be here," he said.
His counterpart in today;s title clash, Pitso Mosimane is aware of RS Berkane's capabilities. "We know RS Berkane is a very strong team and they have a good new coach and talented players.
They are always doing well on the international scene and we respect them much. This is a final so it’s a 50-50 game and both sides have equal chance to win the cup," Mosimane said.
"For us, we want to win, and we must work well to achieve that. During the past weeks we had many tough games in the league and in the CAF Champions League, in addition to many travels.
We will make sure to be well prepared. Maybe we are physically tired, but we are mentally ready. "Every match comes with its pressure. Al Ahly is always expected to win, and we want to do that and make our supporters at home happy.
"This is a final, and we are ready to get the result we want. We will do our best to raise the trophy and make our fans happy," the South African tactician added
This is the third time the Qatari capital hosting the African title clash since 2019 following a collaboration between Qatar Football Association and the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
