Kaizer Chiefs suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Kabuscorp in the first leg of the CAF Confederation Cup first preliminary round at the Estádio 11 de Novembro on Saturday.
Julio Matondo scored the only goal of the match giving his side an advantage ahead of the return tie, which will take place on 27 September at FNB Stadium.
Zitha Kwinika, Thabo Cele, and Mduduzi Shabalala returned to the starting line-up for Chiefs, replacing Reeve Frosler, Siphesihle Ndlovu, and Gaston Sirino.
In the absence of head coach Nasreddine Nabi, who’s heavily linked for an exit, Khalil Ben Youssef and Cedric Kaze were leading the team.
In what was the first meeting between the two sides, both teams started with a cautious approach. But it was Chiefs who quickly found their footing, knocking on the door a couple of times in search of an early opener.
In the seventh minute, Kabuscorp’s goalkeeper, Evandro De Lima, pulled off a fantastic save, denying a powerful shot from Glody Lilepo. Pule Mmodi followed up with another close range attempt, his shot was blocked by the home side’s defence.
However, as time went, Kabuscorp began to deny Chiefs much space to play and made some advances themselves, though they struggled to create-cut clear chances.
The hosts often used long passes, especially down the flanks as Chiefs were somewhat impenetrable through the middle. The final minutes of the first half saw Kabuscorp stepping up their attack, looking dangerous whenever they moved forward. The score was 0-0 at halftime.
In the early stages of the second half, the two teams engaged in a midfield battle, desperate to push forward and finally break the deadlock.
After relying on long balls in the first half, the Angolan side tried a different approach, trying to maintain possession and building their attacks from the back.
In the 60th minute, Kabuscorp finally found the breakthrough when Matondo headed in a cross, capitalising on poor marking from the Betway Premiership side’s defense. The home side threatened to score again when Bayala Nsimba made a dangerous run into the box with his attempt stopped by Brandon Petersen.
Chiefs tried to respond immediately, pushing for an equaliser. Thabo Cele threatened to bring them level with a thunderous shot from distance, only to see his effort crash against the post.
Kabuscorp held on for the victory as the Soweto giants failed to find a breakthrough before the final whistle.
