Al Hilal SC traveled to Lubumbashi, DR Congo, to snatch a point from Sunday’s 1-1 CAF Champions League draw against St Eloi Lupopo. The Sudanese side, which currently plays home matches in Kigali, were without their star winger Jean Claude Girumugisha who watched the match from the stands after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Friday handed him a three-match suspension over unsportsmanlike conduct during his side’s 2-1 win against MC Alger in Kigali on November 21. Girumugisha’s club appealed against the charges but he couldn’t play as CAF Appeals Committee is yet to examine the case. It took the visitors 12 minutes to open the scoring when playmaker Abdelrazig Omer Yagoub netted a wonderful goal from close range, converting an assist from Adama Coulibaly on the right flank. Forward Ramos Kashala fired in the equalizer in the 79th minute to give St Eloi Lupopo a lifeline. A quickly taken corner kick fell in the visitors’ penalty area and the forward made no mistake with his finish to earn the host the first point in Group C. In another Group C encounter, Mamelodi Sundowns earned a valuable away point in Alger after they played a 0-0 draw against Algerian side MC Alger at the Ali La Pointe Stadium on Friday night. Al Hilal will next face Sundowns in Johannesburg when the group stage resumes in late January. Lupopo will host MC Alger, who also have one point from two matches.
