The responsibility of being Nigeria’s remaining CAF representative was on Enyimba, but the Yemi Olarawaju-led team stumbled in their first group stage step in Egypt.
Nine-time Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) champions, Enyimba FC, suffered a 2-0 defeat in their opening CAF Confederation Cup (CAFCC) group stage clash against Egypt’s Al Masry at the Suez Canal Stadium in Ismailia on Wednesday, November 27.
Having scaled through the preliminary stages of the competition, Enyimba were the only NPFL side to progress to the group stage of the CAF club competitions for the 2024/25 season. Remo Stars and Rangers International were eliminated in the CAF Champions League preliminaries, while El-Kanemi Warriors couldn’t emulate Enyimba’s grit to make it to the CAFCC group stage.
However, the People’s Elephants had barely settled into the game when Mohammed Hashem’s fifth-minute strike disrupted their plans.
With the game still well within their grasp, coach Yemi Olarawaju made four substitutions after the one-hour mark. Nonetheless, the change he had hoped for came from the hosts’ camp, as Hashem struck again to double Al Masry’s lead and ultimately condemn Enyimba to a 2-0 loss.t.
The result extended Enyimba’s winless run in continental competitions to seven matches, a streak reminiscent of their 2024 CAF Champions League campaign.
Adding to the disappointment, Enyimba became the fourth Nigerian team to fall to Al Masry in Egypt, following Rivers United’s 2-1 loss in 2021, Rangers International’s 4-2 defeat in 2019, and FC Ifeanyi Ubah’s 1-0 setback in 2017.
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