Zamalek barely won while Ahli drew in the Orange CAF Champions League first leg matches of round 32, reports Abeer Anwar Six-time champions Ahli held Ethiopia's Coffee FC to a 0-0 draw in Addis Ababa in the first leg of round 32 of the African Champions league, the continent's most prized club football tournament. Ahli were playing their first competitive game since 74 fans were killed in a soccer riot in a league game in Port Said on 1 February. Most of those who died were Ahli supporters. In Addis, Ahli played attacking football from the outset which seemed to unsettle the home side. The Red Devils were unaffected by the high altitude, showing strength in covering the full length of the pitch especially in the second half. Mohamed Barakat and Mohamed Nagi started the game for Ahli despite coach Manual Jose's earlier suggestion that they were unlikely to feature due to injury. Striker star Mohamed Abu Treika came on as a substitution in the second half and made a good attempt with a looping header just seconds from the final whistle. "It was in the mouth of the goal. I was sure that the ball would end up in the net but the Coffee goalie saved it. It was a fantastic last minute scoring opportunity but we missed it," Abu Treika said after the game. In general, though, Ahli players were happy with the result. "We played for a win. We had three or four clear scoring opportunities and despite the goalless draw it is now an advantage for us," Barakat said. Coffee's goalkeeper Zakariyas Oniyango and defender Daniel Derbe denied Ahli on several times. At the other end Coffee missed a good chance in the dying minute from a goalmouth melee. Coffee striker Tafesse Tesfaye admitted that Ahli played offensive football. "It was very disappointing that we didn't live up to the expectations. We didn't even make dangerous attacks. They really were fast and had the full control of the match with their short passing game. Their man-to-man play effectively worked because we didn't get space to penetrate their defence zone," Tesfaye said. Striker Tesfaye expects a better result in the return match in two weeks in Cairo despite the difficulty. "We are not losing hope before the return match. They played well in the first leg but they were not able to score. We may play better and score in Cairo," Tesfaye added. The hard fact is that no Ethiopian team, the national side or club, has won in Egypt in the last 40 or so years. Tesfaye said that it is possible to change this statistic. Meanwhile Barakat said he was sure that his side will win in Cairo. "We were very close to scoring in this match. But definitely we will score in the second leg. A first minute strike from Benin international Razak Omotoyossi was enough for Zamalek to secure a 1-0 home win over Africa Sports in the CAF Champions League round of 32 first leg. In a game staged behind closed doors at the Military Academy Stadium following the Port Said tragedy, Omotoyossi's goal after 43 seconds made the difference to give Zamalek a slender 1-0 lead against Africa Sports of Cote d'Ivoire ahead of the return leg in two weeks. Without any introduction, Omotoyossi was off the mark with his first touch when he controlled Shikabala's cross inside the area to outjump the keeper before slotting home into an empty net. Africa Sports sole chance of the half came when Desire Kouame fired a fierce long range drive that missed the target. In other matches in the Champions League, Ghana champions Berekum Chelsea shocked continental powerhouse Raja Athletic Club of Morocco by beating them 5-0 in their Orange CAF Champions League 1/16th round first leg clash in Berekum. Striker Emmanuel Clottey netted a hat-trick while other strikes from Solomon Asante and Abdul Basit handed them the first leg cushion ahead of the return leg in a fortnight in Casablanca. The first leg encounter of the Orange CAF Champions League match played at Rufaro stadium ended in a 2-2 draw between home side FC Platinum of Zimbabwe and visiting Al Marreikh of Sudan. Power Dynamos and TP Mazembe tied 1-1 after a thrilling first leg in the Orange CAF Champions League 1/16th round match played at Arthur Davies Stadium in Kitwe. Centre back Kamuzati Kabwe delivered a good free kick, leaving goalkeeper Robert Kidiaba sprawling, as Power Dynamos struck late to tie the clash with TP Mazembe. Meanwhile, Tanzanian club Simba in the Orange CAF Confederation Cup defeated Algerian visitors Entente Setif 2-0 Sunday. African rookies Hwange of Zimbabwe came from behind to snatch a 1-1 draw at home to Al Amal from Sudan with Rodwell Chinyengetere levelling just before half-time after Mohd Adam gave the east Africans an early advantage. CS Sfaxien of Tunisia, the only club to lift the Confederation Cup twice since its 2004 inception in place of the African Cup Winners Cup and CAF Cup competitions, look set to advance after winning in CongoBrazzaville. The team triumphed 2-1 over AC Leopards in Dolisie with Maher Haddad and Guinean Naby Soumah scoring before Loseni Komara pulled one goal back from a penalty kick on the half-hour mark. Tana Formation of Madagascar surprised 2011 semi-finalists InterClube of Angola 2-0.
