Not Up to Par, Etoile Suffers a Defeat that Could Have Been Avoided. All it Takes is Belief...
The Press — Having lost momentum locally with a worrying ranking, Etoile was counting on their trip to Nairobi yesterday to regain their strength through continental competition. And as the first preliminary round had given Mohamed Ali Nafkha's team some cold sweats at times, winning narrowly (3-0) at the Olimpico against Ahli Wad Medani, the Sahel's flagship club had to take action from the start in Kenyan territory, in order to approach the return to Sousse in the best mental conditions.
Let's move on to the highlights of the match and note that Nairobi United FC refused to broadcast the match live and prohibited the ESS media team from broadcasting the match (what an atmosphere!).
Key Points of the Match
After a long period of observation, the Kenyans finally broke through Etoile's defense less than 10 minutes before halftime with a goal scored by Ovella Ochieng. That's where we'll leave the first half, except that upon returning from the locker rooms, after a quarter of an hour of play, Etoile will again yield under the weight of a second goal, courtesy of John Otieno.
The "Green City" club seems to be in free fall, while ESS is inevitably reeling, until the final whistle of the Lesothian referee, Lebalang Martin Mokete. It will be necessary to work hard next Sunday, in the return match, at the Olimpico, and to start building confidence already, when hosting the Bejaouan lantern, next Wednesday.
Team Lineups
ESS: Sabri Ben Hassan, Slaheddine Ghedamsi, Najeh Ferjani, Alphonce Omija, Nassim Hnid, Adem Ouertani, Fedi Ben Choug, Rayane Anane, Raki Aouani, Moussa Senghor, Yassine Chaabani. Nairobi United FC: Kevin Odour, Kevin Otiende, John Otieno, Lennox Ogutu, Yusuf Nasri, Brian Omondi, Lesley Owino, Enock Machaka, Ovello Ochieng, Michael Karamor, Dancan Omala.
