Wydad team picture during the CAF Champions League 2022/23 Quarterfinal match between Simba and Wydad held at Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania on 22 April 2023 ©Elia Bennet/BackpagePix
Thursday Apr 27, 2023. 15:00
Wydad Casablanca will host Simba SC in a CAF Champions League quarter-final second-leg clash at Stade Mohamed V in Morocco on Friday.
Kick-off is at 9:00 pm CAT.
The Moroccan champions are on the backfoot after suffering a 1-0 loss to Simba in the first-leg clash in Tanzania on April 22 as Wydad’s five-match unbeaten run in the Champions League came to an end.
However, the Red Castle are undefeated in their last nine home matches in continental tournament having recorded an impressive seven victories and two draws which came against Angola’s Petro de Luanda and CR Belouizdad of Algeria.
“The opponent imposed themselves on us, and they were strong and deserved victory,” Wydad head coach Juan Carlos Garrido said after the first-leg game.
“Now we will turn this page and head forward into the future, and the return match will be completely different from the one we experienced in Tanzania.
“We suffered due to the absences of some players, and with the presence of our fans and our players having recovered, we will snatch the ticket for the semi-finals.”
Meanwhile, Simba bounced back to winning ways in the Champions League when they claimed a narrow win over Wydad and prior to the match, they had lost to Moroccan giants Raja Casablanca in their final group stage game.
The defeat to Raja was the Tanzanian giants’ second loss in their last three away games in this prestigious competition including a defeat to Guinea’s Horoya AC and a win over Ugandan side Vipers.
“I congratulate my players for a good performance; it was not an easy match,” Simba head coach Roberto Oliveira ‘Robertinho’ said after the first-leg match.
“We have played against big teams, but we have done well. Our team is getting stronger every day; we have the best players.
“So we tackle every game with great respect as each team that faces us is keen on how good we are.”
Wydad and Simba have met twice in the Champions League since 2011 with each team having recorded a win.
The Red Castle thrashed Simba 3-0 the last time they hosted the Reds of Msimbazi in May 2011.
