CAF Confederation Cup: Rayon coach optimistic team will advance to group stages

Head coach Yamen Zalfani is optimistic that his team will eventually qualify and feature in the group stage of CAF Confederation Cup after the CAF Confederation Cup second round first leg encounter against Al Hilal Benghazi. The teams play the first leg on Sunday, September 24, and the second leg on September 30 at Kigali Pele Stadium. Tunisian tactician Yamen Zalfani is seeking to produce an encouraging game against Al Hilal Benghazi in their away CAF Confederation Cup’s second preliminary round first-leg matches. ALSO READ: Rayon Sports exempted from Confederation cup first preliminary round Yamen Zalfani said he will field a good squad. “I am going to prepare a new strategy to play at home and as you know, I like my team to play in the opponent’s field...I do not like to play behind,” said Yamen Zalfani. ALSO READ: Youssef ruled out of Al Hilal Benghazi clash through injury Reflecting on their preparations for the upcoming clash, he said Rayon Sports’ goal is to triumph and knock out the Libyan side, and repeat what they did in 2018. He added: “I think we have a good chance to qualify. We are playing against a very experienced team, who have been competing in this competition for a long time and they have more experience but we know what we are fighting against.” Rayon Sports, who represent Rwanda in the CAF Confederation Cup after winning the 2023 Peace Cup, were exempted from the first preliminary round due to their stellar performance in the 2018 campaign where they reached the competition’s group stages. The Benghazi-based club progressed to the second round of the CAF Confederation Cup by beating Kenya’s Kakamega Homeboyz 4-1 on aggregate, after a goalless first leg.