Who are Bandaris Confed Cup opponents US Ben Guerdane?

Who are Bandaris Confed Cup opponents US Ben Guerdane?

Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Shield winners Bandari FC will on Saturday take on Tunisia’s Union Sportive de Ben Guerdane, an unfamiliar side in Kenya having a brief history in the continental arena.

Popularly known as US Ben Guerdane, the club is based in the city of Ben Guerdane in South East Tunisia.

The club was founded in 1936, but struggled to shoot to the topflight of the competitive Tunisian Professional League 1 until 2015 when they finished second in the Tunisian Professional League Group B.

Under the stewardship of president Mehdi Dbouba, the team took a new dimension on the national level in the 2016 season, finishing 11th on the 16-team log in their debut season.

They are participating for the first time in the continental competition after finishing fourth last season, as Tunisia is guaranteed four slots in the continentals; two in CAF Champions League and two in Confederation Cup.

Men to watch out for

Forward Chiheb Zoghlemi was Guardene’s joint top scorer last season with Bahaeddine Sellami, hitting four each in a league whose top scorer had 10.

To earn the first round ticket against Bandari, Guerdane knocked out Amarat United of South Sudan with an aggregate of 5-1, all goals coming from the first leg at home.

Guerdane plays at the Stade du 7 Mars, which has a capacity of 10,000 where their current head coach Chokri Khatoui returned in June this year, after ditching the club for rivals Stade Tunisien in March 2019.

The gaffer had guided the side between April 2016 to July 2017, boasting of stints with LTPA Tozeur and Metlaoui previously.

The side is seventh in their domestic league standings, having played two matches of the current campaign garnering three points. They lost 1-0 to JS Kairouan before winning with a similar margin over Metlaoui.

Guerdane has no league title so far with their biggest achievement being runners up in the President’s Cup in the season 2016/17.

The overall winner between Bandari and Guardane will qualify for the playoff match where they will tackle teams set to be dropped from Champions League.

Tags:

Bandari CAF Confederation Cup US Ben Guerdane

Want to send us a story? Submit on Wananchi Reporting on the Citizen Digital App or Send an email to wananchi@royalmedia.co.ke or Send an SMS to 25170 or WhatsApp on 0743570000

Leave a Comment

Comments

No comments yet.

latest stories