Chronicle Editor
Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Sports Reporter
TOGOLESE officials will take charge of the FC Platinum and Republic of Congo’s AS Otoho Total Caf Champions League first round first-leg game at the Stade Marien Ngauabi in Owando State, about 450km from the capital Brazzaville on Sunday.
Kokou Ntale (32) is the referee and will be assisted by Lima Kabassima and Kokouvi Tonou in the match, in which the Zimbabwean champions will be hoping to get a positive result before finishing off the Central Africans at Mandava Stadium a week later.
FC Platinum flew out of Harare on board a Kenyan Airways flight just after midnight and will connect for the 56 minutes flight to Owando in Brazzaville later today.
Norman Mapeza, the reigning Castle Lager Premier Soccer League Coach of the Year, who guided the platinum miners to their second consecutive league title, will be hoping to continue breaking new ground as he did when FC Platinum became the first team from outside Harare and Bulawayo to lift the league title.
He ventures into a fortress on Sunday as the Congolese are yet to lose at home since the beginning of last year, although they are participating in the Caf Champions League only for the second time in their history.
Otoho shocked Angolan giants Agosto on the away goals’ rule by handing them a 2-0 defeat in Congo to overturn a 2-4 loss in Luanda.
They made their maiden appearance in the tournament this year, humbling Algerian giants AS Alger 2-0 at home only to be clobbered 9-0 in the second-leg in Algeria.
FC Platinum knocked out Cnaps of Madagascar 2-1 on goal aggregate from a 1-1 stalemate in Antananarivo and a 1-0 win at Mandava Stadium.
Winners of the two-leg encounter will qualify for the lucrative group stages of the Champions League, whose draw will be conducted on December 28.
The group stages get underway from January 11, 2019.
Online Reporter