MOGAMAD ALLIE: Al Ahly charge highlights dodgy actions blighting Caf league

The complaint by Al Ahly about Mamelodi Sundowns “supporters” placing obstructions in the way of their team bus en route to the FNB Stadium for last Saturday’s Champions League clash once again highlights the childish actions that continue to blight the prestige of Caf’s flagship club competition.

To their credit, Sundowns have undertaken to work with police and to punish the perpetrators if the claims made by the 10-time African champions on their website prove to be valid.

The Egyptian giants said that they registered an official complaint with the match commissioner before the game after their arrival at the venue was delayed.

It’s all well and good for Sundowns to promise to investigate the veracity of Al Ahly’s allegation and to take appropriate action against the culprits should it be necessary, but the incident should never have been allowed to happen.

After all, it was only 13 months ago that fans wearing Sundowns kit abused Mosimane by displaying vulgar posters and shouting obscenities at their former coach. A group of hotheads also blocked the Al Ahly bus at the entrance to the Lucas Moripe Stadium before the second leg of the teams’ Champions League quarterfinal tie.

As it is, the host club is bound to provide a safe, unhindered passage to the match venue for visitors in terms of clause 1 (e) of article 7 of Caf’s regulations for the Champions League that states: “The police service of the host association must ensure the security of the visiting delegation as well as of the referees designated to officiate the match. It is the responsibility of the police service to prohibit any invasion of the field, any attack against the players and/or officials in and outside the stadium.”

While Mosimane refused to blame the incident for his side’s 1-0 defeat that leaves them needing to win both their remaining group stage games to qualify for the quarterfinals, Saturday’s incident is the latest in a litany of shenanigans that continue to blight a competition that has grown in prestige over the past few years.

Good money

Caf should be applauded for making great strides in raising the profile of their two big continental club competitions, the Champions League and Confederation Cup.

Last year the prize money for both competitions was increased significantly with the Champions League winners banking a cool $2.5m (about R37.5m) and the Confederation Cup champions raking in $1.25m (about R18.75m). There’s also good money on offer for reaching the group stages.

The commendably raised profile of the continent’s club competitions makes it doubly disappointing to note that many host clubs still see it fit to employ underhand tactics to unsettle opponents. Disconcertingly, Caf has not come down strongly enough on the perpetrators to deter them from even contemplating such dubious deeds.

In the modern, hi-tech era, there’s no excuse for clubs to employ tactics such as making visiting teams wait at the airport, first at immigration desks to enter the country and then for their transport, accommodating them in substandard hotels and employing underhand means to unsettle their guests. There’s no way these shenanigans will be tolerated in Europe and South America so why should Africa be turning a blind eye to it?

SA clubs often return from their trips to other African countries with tales of being unable to sleep because of noise made by fans outside their hotels, being unable to find suitable training venues and generally, just being given a hard time.

Many rationalise this as having to be tough to travel and play in Africa. But is it really fair and necessary?

Enforce code

Surely at this level of competition, the best facilities should be made available to the visiting teams. It’s one thing to drum into players the importance of being mentally tough in their quest for success but it’s a different story to expect them to have to endure deliberately planned intimidatory schemes.

Yes, Caf have in recent years taken action against clubs for failing to control their fans for offences such as pitch invasions, hurling missiles and other unsavoury incidents that have endangered the safety of those in the stands and on the pitch but they also need to put their foot down and enforce their code of conduct regarding the hosting of visiting teams.

Until then, the success of teams in the Champions League and Confederation Cup will always have a cloud of possible skulduggery hanging over them.