Mongezi Bobe @ Backpagepix

This promises to be a hard away fixture for Leopards as AL Merreikh looks not to be a walk in the park. They finished second in their league run on the previous season and they have won the Sudanese Premier League title 18 times.

Merreikh also have a good record when it comes to the Confederations Cup as they have finished as runner-ups in the Final in 2007 and returned in 2008 to finish in the group stages. They have appeared 7 times in the CAF competition.

Lidoda Duvha may not hold similar credentials but possess a youthful side that is willing to fight, hence they have made it this far in the competition. Leopards had a rather slow run in the PSL (ABSA Premiership) but they managed to finish on a high note, which will fuel them for the encounter in Sudan.

Both teams will be facing a few challenges though as Leopards are still in the pre-season stage and the players may not yet be back to full game fitness. They also have made a few changes to the squad with a few key players being released, so a slightly different team will be fielded with 90% being the same.

Al Merreikh on the other hand will be without seven of their regular stars for this game, through injury and, in the case of goalkeeper Essam Al-Hadary, national team commitments with Egypt.

With the fixture being set and ready to unfold both teams will be looking to get a head-start in front of the other. Al Merreikh have home advantage while Leopards will look to get away with an away win to head to the second leg in a slightly comfortable position.

Source: www.blackleopardsfc.com