We are still second, six points behind Espérance, so theoretically everything is still possible. But not a lot of people can be openly optimistic, and we all know what happens once Espérance is leading.

I don’t think it’s necessary to go back on each of the previous games, but the transfer window shouldn’t go unnoticed.

- The first winter signing was Hamdi El Mabrouki, a 23 year old defensive midfielder from Stade Tunisien, on a 4-year contract. I don’t actually see the need for a defensive midfielder, since Étoile isn’t short on talented players in this compartment.

- Second to join was 18 year old U-21 Nigerian international Kabiru Akinsola. A very talented player without a doubt, having won the 2007 U-17 World Cup in South Corea. His speed and technical abilities will come in handy to get Étoile’s attacking line out of its bad form. He is currently with the Nigerian U-21 team for the African Cup of Nations, and will be in Sousse by mid-February

- Last to date : Everson Pereira da Silva. This 33 year old Brazilian has played for a lot of european teams, and is known for his massive long distance strikes. Here’s an idea of what he can do :

Yet these impressive free kicks could probably be his only addition, since you can’t expect much physical commitment from a guy his age. He remains nontheless an experienced player from whom the rest of the team can learn a lot.

I can’t argue about the quality of these transfers, but I’m sceptical as to how Gernot Rohr will use them to bring back some joy to the Olympic Stadium of Sousse, strong with more than 10.000 season ticket holders (50% of the stadium’s capacity) eager to see their team threaten Espérance’s more than serious title chances.

CAF Confed. Cup :

As for the Confederation Cup, things are back to square in Group B, as Asante Kotoko (Ghana) beat Al Merrikh (Sudan) yesterday with a 87′ goal by Eric Bekoe. That surely does serve everybody else’s interests in this group, nobody wants to see Al-Merrikh get away so soon. 1-0-1 for every team, 2 home and 2 away games left each : things can get pretty exciting and unpredictable. Next game is against Al-Merrikh, September 13th in Sousse, 10 p.m. local time (again, the Ramadan issue : games are scheduled after sundown to let the prayers have their meal and rest for a while, let’s just hope more than a few thousand fans show up to support their team).

In the other group, CS Sfaxien has taken the lead after two games, including a precious draw against tunisian champions Club Africain, especially if you consider the fact that CSS have lost their first two league games 3-1 respectively to Espérance de Tunis and CS Hammam-Lif. This team seems to do a lot better when an african trophy is involved. I hope for a 100% tunisian final for this cup, since none of our clubs has made it through to the Champions League group stages, we have at least to keep some reputation by bringing this one home.

National Team Call-ups :

Initially, only two (current) Étoile players had made it to Humberto Coelho’s 25 player list for Tunisia’s highly important fixture this week against Burkina Faso in the WC and ACN qualifiers : keeper Aymen Mathlouthi and defender Radhouene Felhi. Now Mehdi Ben Dhifallah has taken advantage of Chermiti’s and Dos Santos’ injuries to make it back on the list after being dropped last week. Along with Mohamed Selliti from Stade Tunisien, he will try to offer the national squad more attacking options. Let’s wish them all the best in securing – why not ? – 3 points in Ouagadougou.

Transfers :

Nothing really worth mentioning like what happened yesterday in England. Only a few loan deals here and there to keep the huge amount of players we have in our football section fit. Youngsters Ouaèl Bellakhal and Adnène Moulla will spend the season at Jendouba Sport, whereas Mahmoud Khemiri and Mehdi Ben Nsira will finally stay in Sousse after Étoile failed to agree terms with AS Kasserine and Club Athlétique Bizertin.

The additional 5 players to the CAF Confederation Cup list have been announced today : the not-so-impressive goalkeeper Abderrahmane Baâboura (if you watched the Morocco Summer Cup, you know what I’m talking about), Ahmed Mida (offensive midfielder from Stade Gabésien), Mejdi Mosrati (offensive midfielder from US Monastirienne), Tarek Ziadi (forward from CS Sfaxien) and Emeka Opara. The group has no choice but to be ready in 10-12 days to host Asante Kotoko, Ghana’s most successful team, who gave a hard time to CS Sfaxien and Al Ahly in the 2006 Champions League group stage. But before that, nothing could make the fans happier than a win against Club Africain on Saturday. We’ll be definitely seeing some of this :

I’m very happy to start just days before the new LP1 season kicks off, and what a start ! Two “clásicos” to start the campaign : Espérance ST – CS Sfaxien and Étoile – Club Africain (to those of you who are not yet familiar with tunisian football, think of a Manchester United – Arsenal AND Chelsea – Liverpool match day).
Étoile will be out for revenge after losing last season’s championship to Club Africain in that dramatic finish, but will have to deal with several absences : Amine Chermiti, who has just moved to Hertha Berlin on a two year loan (more to that later), the excellent Muri Ogunbiyi and Moussa Narry (respectively sold to EA Guingamp and AJ Auxerre). Besides, Ben Dhifallah and Radhouan Felhi will be missing for a third yellow card from last season (now if the FTF bureaucrats can explain THAT to me …). Let’s just hope their replacements will be up to the task.

Emeka Opara’s return from 1.FC Kaiserslautern couldn’t have been more appropriate. He was a joy to watch during the 2 seasons he spent in Sousse, and his offensive skills will be needed, since Gelson might as well leave (there are rumors about an offer from a swiss club, but nothing official yet). But other youngsters will be worth following this season, like Belgacem Toniche, Tembo Fwayo, Karamoko Touré, Mejdi Mosrati, and Sadat Bukari aka “Boumeliar”, probably Ghana’s next star if he finally achieves the breakthrough we’ve been waiting for.

In other news, the club has held its annual session today, which saw Moez Driss being reelected for two more years as chairman, assisted by Mr. Raouf Daâloul as vice-chairman. While answering the supporters’ questions, Mr. Driss mentioned the exceptional year Étoile has experienced, winning the CAF Champions League and finishing 4th at the FIFA Club World Cup, which has gotten the club a name on the international scene. He also officially announced Chermiti’s departure (now we can forget what we’ve read in the german press these last days). He also discussed the somewhat unpopular transfer of Khaled Melliti to Club Africain, and explained his wish to look towards the future with the recruitment of Ahmed Akaichi, instead of keeping a player against his will.

Good luck to Tunisia’s red devils then, and let’s hope for a “clean” season : no more violence in the stadiums, less chauvinism, and a better management by the new FTF board.