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The draw for the quarterfinals of the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup was done on Thursday, serving up some intriguing ties, featuring six North African teams and two sides from South Africa.
Defending champions Al Ahly will face Sudanese side Al-Hilal Omdurman in the first quarterfinal. The Egyptian giants are aiming to become the first side to win the competition for a third successive time and claim a record-extending 13th title. Al Ahly narrowly avoided elimination in the group stage and will hope to carry that momentum into the knockout stages.
Al-Hilal will carry confidence into their match against Al Ahly after topping a difficult group that included Tanzanian giants Young Africans and five-time winners TP Mazembe.
Another Egyptian club, Pyramids FC, will take on the Moroccan side, AS FAR. Pyramids is having a fine season and hopes to translate its strong domestic form to the continental stage. Some fans are optimistic the club could win its first continental trophy.
AS FAR, winners of the competition in 1985, went undefeated through the group stage. It aims to reach the semifinals for the first time in nearly three decades.
The most anticipated tie of the round will see 2016 champions Mamelodi Sundowns play four-time winners Esperance Sportive de Tunis. The game has a couple of interesting storylines behind it. First, it is a rematch of last season’s semifinal which Esperance defeated Sundowns 2-0 on aggregate. Secondly, Sundowns’ Portuguese coach Miguel Cardoso will face his former club, Esperance. Cardoso was at the helm of the Tunisian side leading them to the final, where they lost to Al Ahly.
The fourth quarterfinal pits South African giants Orlando Pirates and Algeria’s MC Alger. Pirates have had a strong Champions League campaign and finished top of their group unbeaten, with the highest number of points of any side (14). Meanwhile, MC Alger will be banking on their strong defence to nullify the threat of Pirates. MC Alger only conceded two goals during the entire group stage.
The first legs of the quarterfinals will take place on April 1, with the return legs being played on April 8.
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