Kaizer Chiefs’ opponents
Horoya
Guinea were one of African football’s powerhouses in the 1970s but the west African country went into decline quickly thereafter and has had limited impact on the continental football scene since.
But the arrival of businessman Antonio Souare, who was once the manager of Miriam Makeba, at the helm of the club in 2011 has drastically changed their fortunes, even to the extent of importing players from other countries in the region – something that was unthinkable in the preceding three decades.
“Horoya only existed by name,” explains Souaré. “I established an investment project for the initial period 2011-2017, with, first of all, the establishment of an essential framework: headquarters, administration, team, technical staff.”
Horoya quickly won the league title in Guinea and have continued to dominate the domestic scene. But Souare’s ambitions are broader and he has been taking a regular tilt at the Champions League.
In 2018, they knocked Sundowns out of the league phase after forcing a goalless draw in the last group game in Atteridgeville and last season edged past Bidvest Wits in the Confederation Cup. Horoya made it to the semi-finals before losing to Pyramids of Egypt last October.
Souaré hired former French international Victor Zvunka as coach and he stayed for three years in an unusually lengthy tenure that allowed the club to build solid foundations.
Now Senegalese Lamine Ndiaye, whose previous clubs include TP Mazembe, is in charge, allowed by CAF to coach even without a license from Africa’s governing body because he has UEFA qualifications.
Petro Atletico
The Angolan club celebrated their 41st anniversary this year and so are a decade younger than Chiefs.
Their birthday of January 14 is close to that of the South Africans but the team is vastly different in that it is a multi-sport club, backed by Angola’s primary hard currency earner Sonangol, and offer 12 different sports.
Their women’s handball team have won the African title and the men’s basketball side two, the last in 2015. The football team have 15 past Girabola titles, which is two more than arch rivals Primeiro Agosto, who Chiefs knocked out in the last knockout round.
But Petro have not won the league since 2009, finishing second the last four seasons to the army club. Petro’s ambition is to become among the best clubs on the continent by 2028 – a long-term objective set by the board.
“We have a healthy team in administrative, sporting and financial terms. In 2014, when we took over the leadership of the club, we outlined our goal, which was to start competing in 2016 and conquer Africa by 2028.
“Currently, we are in the group stage of African Champions League, but for Petro this is not enough. This year we want to win Group C,” says club president Tomas Faria.
He has promoted the young Spanish coach Toni Cosano up from the club’s youth strictures, where he started in 2017, to run the first team, which includes imported Brazilian attackers Tiago Azulao and Toni.
Wydad Casablanca
Wydad could walk in their sleep now to the departure gate for the flight to South Africa, such has been the frequency of their trips south in recent years.
Chiefs will be a welcome distraction, however, after they have met Sundowns in each of the last four editions, in the process making five trips to Tshwane – losing three and drawing twice.
But in Morocco, Sundowns lost four trips in a row, albeit by a single goal, before forcing a goalless draw in their last visit in last season’s group phase.
Wydad were Champions League winners in 2017 – their second success after victory in 1992 – and controversial runners-up to Esperance in 2019 when they staged an ugly walk off the pitch after disputing a VAR decision.
Last season they reached the semi-final but got hammered over two legs by a Mosimane-led Al Ahly. Their recent record was enough to make them top seeds although they are not reigning Moroccan champions. Neighbours Raja pipped them to the title on the last day of the season in October.
The new season in Morocco kicked off in December with veteran Tunisian coach Faouzi Benzarti back in charge. The 71-yearold is in his third spell in four years at Wydad, whose turnover of coaches is at odds with their success.
Coaches walk in and out of the job with alarming frequency. The club have recently reinforced their line-up with Tanzania striker Simon Msuva and Moroccan international Ayoub El Kaabi, who was playing in China.