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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Sports

Rangers target winning start in CAF Champions League

From The Punch · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Enugu Rangers will host Benin’s AS Sobemap in the first leg of the CAF Champions League preliminary round on Sunday in Abeokuta.
  • Rangers want to build an advantage before the return leg in Porto-Novo after drawing with Katsina United in their NPFL opener.
  • The winner will face the winner of ASN Nigelec and MC Alger in the second preliminary round.

Enugu Rangers want to turn their late fighting spirit into a winning start in Africa when they face AS Sobemap of Porto-Novo on Sunday. The Nigerian club will host the Beninese champions at the MKO Abiola Sports Complex in Abeokuta in the first leg of their CAF Champions League preliminary-round tie.

We will come out and push till the end in our clash against AS Sobemap of Porto-Novo on Sunday.

— Amobi EzeakuThe Rangers chairman described the team’s approach to the first-leg match.

Rangers chairman Amobi Ezeaku said the team would maintain its intensity until the final whistle. “We will come out and push till the end in our clash against AS Sobemap of Porto-Novo on Sunday,” he said.

Ezeaku pointed to Rangers’ opening-day draw with Katsina United as evidence of that mentality. The Enugu side scored a late equaliser in the NPFL match, a result head coach Fidelis Ilechukwu described as a disappointment but one the team had put behind it.

The evidence of our strong mentality was in our league opener against Katsina United, where we got the goal in the last minutes.

— Amobi EzeakuHe cited Rangers’ late equaliser as evidence of the squad’s resilience.

“I will not blame my players (for the draw) because they are the best and we will give them the confidence to go again,” Ilechukwu said. He added that the continental tie offered Rangers a chance to make up for the missed opportunities in the league opener.

I will not blame my players (for the draw) because they are the best and we will give them the confidence to go again.

— Fidelis IlechukwuThe head coach said the team had moved past its league-opening draw.

Ezeaku urged supporters to attend in large numbers in Abeokuta. “There is light at the end of the tunnel for us. We hope more fans will come out. This is Rangers representing the country,” he said. Rangers are also keeping their domestic ambitions in view as they begin their continental campaign. The winner of the tie will advance to face the winner of ASN Nigelec versus MC Alger.

There is light at the end of the tunnel for us. We hope more fans will come out. This is Rangers representing the country.

— Amobi EzeakuEzeaku called on supporters to attend the match in Abeokuta.
About this summary

Originally published by The Punch in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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