Kano Pillars exit CAF Champions league
KBy Mansur Abubakar
ano Pillars crashed out of the CAF Champions League after they were defeated 5-2 on aggregate by Morocco’s Moghreb Athletic Tetouane. The Nigerian premier league champions won 2-1 in Kano thanks to second half goals from Tony Edjomariegwe and Rabiu Ali, but the result was not enough to overturn the 4-0 deficit from the first leg clash at the Stade Saniat Rmel.
Pillars suffered a massive 4-0 defeat in the first leg battle at the Stade Saniat Rmel on the 21st of March.
The Okey Emordi-led team were taught a lesson in Morocco with Mouhcine Yajour scoring thrice in a one-sided affair which saw Pillars needing a miracle to progress in the second leg match, which got underway by 4pm.
Tetouane goalkeeper saved superbly from Ali after the playmaker was played through, and Ezekiel Mba also dragged his shot wide when he should have punished the Moroccans in the 16th minute.
Pillars increased the tempo and power as the match went on. A ssorry miss from Adamu Hassan wasn’t what Pillars needed.
The home fans were silenced in the 33rd minute when Iajour put the visitors ahead with a fine finish.
There was a big let-off from Pillars though as Hassan escaped and set up his team mate who couldn’t level up for the hosts.
Tetouane ended up winning the first half 1-0 as the home fans wondered what went wrong with their darling team.
After the break, Masu Gida were looking to create a spark and they controlled the game with ease.
They soon got the much needed equaliser through Edjomariegwe on the hour mark.
The impatient home fans threw empty cans and bottles into the pitch expressing their disappointments in Pillars’ inadequacies as the clock started ticking.
Ali passed the ball with ease and rallied his team mates to score goals in order to at least win the match.
Tetouane were down to 10 men when Hazael Houssani got the marching orders following a second yellow card.
Pillars had chances to win the match in normal time and bombarded the stubborn visitors defence line but that wasn’t enough.
The excellent Ali broke through the North Africans resistance with a late goal to clinch a 2-1 over the 10-man visitors, but the 90th minute strike wasn’t enough as Pillars crashed out of the competition.