CAF Champions League

AmaZulu boss on CCL spot: We knew Chiefs were no match for Al Ahly

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AmaZulu owner-chairman Sandile Zungu with Benni McCarthy

AmaZulu FC boss Sandile Zungu has admitted that he never thought their spot in the Caf Champions League was under threat by Kaizer Chiefs’ participation in the final, saying Chiefs were always going to be no match for Pitso Mosimane’s Al Ahly.

Chiefs faced up against the Egyptian giants this past Saturday where a victory would not only have had them lift the trophy, but qualify for next season’s edition of the competition at the expense of AmaZulu.

Ushutu may have finished as runners-up in the DSTV Premiership, which comes with qualification for the Champions League, but with Chiefs finishing eighth and then having the chance of winning the Champions League, AmaZulu could have seen their spot snatched away from them.

However, they faced Mosimane’s all-conquering Ahly side who swept a 10-man Chiefs aside 3-0 and in the process confirmed South Africa’s second participants in the 2021-22 edition.

Speaking to KickOff.com, Zungu admitted that he never thought their spot was under threat and that they have always been planning for participation in the Champions League.

“Look, to be honest, we always knew that Kaizer Chiefs is no match for Al Ahly,” Zungu told the website.

“We’re not underestimating Chiefs at all but we always knew that this season they were just no match, and who can undermine Pitso Mosimane? He is a proven winner, and we knew he is not going to be beaten by Kaizer Chiefs.

“We saw it as a battle between Pitso Mosimane and Kaizer Chiefs. That’s why, from our planning point of view, we were planning for the Caf Champions League. We were not planning for the Confederation Cup.

“We knew we have already qualified for the Caf Champions League and even in the unlikely situation that we would not have played in the Champions League, we would have still played in the Confederation Cup.

“We take that commitment very seriously. We take that challenge very seriously. It’s completely new to us [Caf competitions] and we’re not going to approach it with any level of arrogance. For us to make it through the qualifying stages to the group stages is our target.”