NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 28 – Kenyan Premier League champions Gor Mahia have been drawn against Cameroon’s New Stars de Douala in the play-off round of the CAF Confederations Cup, with the winner of the two-legged tie set to proceed to the group stages of the tournament.
Gor will start the tournament at home before playing the return leg in a week’s time.
The record Kenyan champions are looking to qualify for the group stages of the competition for the second time in a row.
“For me it is a fair draw. I have done a bit of research about them though there isn’t much information, I think it is a game we can work hard and progress,”
“My target remains to get to the group stages. We failed to do so in the Champions League because of so many factors but now we have that behind our backs and the focus is on this game,” Gor Mahia head coach Hassan Oktay told Capital Sport.
K’Ogalo dropped to the Confederations Cup after losing to Nigeria’s Lobi Stars on the away goal rule, losing the return leg in Enugu 2-0 having won the first leg 3-1 in Nairobi.
Gor were among the seven seeded teams that were in Pot A and were paired against New Star who were one of the 10 non-seeded Confederations Cup teams.
The first leg matches will be played between January 11-13 while the return tie matches are scheduled for between January 18-20.
New Star finished fourth in the Cameroonian top tier league which ended in July with 49 points, 20 behind winners Coton Sport.
They played in the CAF Confederations Cup and advanced from the preliminary round after beating Burundi’s Vital’O 4-1 on aggregate. They drew the first leg 0-0 in Douala before turning the tide in the second leg in Bujumbura to win 4-1.
In the first round, they played to a 1-1 draw away to Al Ahli Tripoli of Libya and held on for a 0-0 draw in the return leg to progress to the play-off round on the away goal rule.
Meanwhile, five other Kenyans based in Zambia will also be in action in the play-off round.
The trio of Antony Akumu, David Owino and Jesse Were who turn out for Zesco United will be up against South African giants Kaizer Chiefs while the duo of Duncan Otieno and Musa Mohammed who are with Nkana will tackle FC San Pedro of Ivory Coast.
Odhiambo and Akumu will fancy a match up against their former Gor teammate Godfrey Walusimbi who moved to Chiefs.
Full draw
Gor Mahia (Kenya) v New Star de Douala (Cameroon), Al Ahli Bengazi (Libya) v Nia Hussein Dey (Algeria), Al Hilal (Sudan) v Mukura Victory Sport (Rwanda), Nkana (Zambia) v FC San Pedro (Ivory Coast), Coton Sport (Cameroon) v Asante Kotoko (Ghana), Zesco United v Kaizer Chiefs (South Africa), Stade Malien (Mali) v Petro Atletico (Angola), Raja Cassablanca (Morocco) v African Stars (Namibia), RS Berkane (|Morocco) v ASC Jaraaf (Senegal), CS Sfaxiewn (Tunisia) v Vipers SC (Uganda), Zamalek (Egypt) v IR Tanger (Morocco), KCCA (Uganda) v AS Otoho d’Oyo (Congo), Bantu FC (Lesotho) v Rangers International (Nigeria), Al Nasr (Libya) v Salitas FC (Burkina Faso), Jimma Abba Jiffar (Ethiopia) v Hassania US Agadir (Morocco)
