Étoile du Sahel 2 – 0 Asante Kotoko

By: Houssem | August 20th, 2008

This man is currently earning the nickname “Tête d’or” (golden head) at Étoile du Sahel. We didn’t see a lot of the impressive pass play we got used to with last season’s team, but Étoile showed that it still has what it takes to be a “Grand d’Afrique” : effectiveness and the ability to control the game’s pace. Two perfectly executed headers by Emeka Opara following two superb crosses (one by Nafkha on a corner kick, and one of Meriah’s numerous crosses who finally found someone actually capable of putting them in) are proof enough for the first, while the latter made Asante Kotoko look like a bunch of amateurs who aren’t yet ready to overcome their north african complex.

Here’s the starting formation :

A. Mathlouthi, E. Opara, A. Abdennour, M. Sassi, A. Jmal, R. Felhi
M. Sakho, T. Fwayo, M.A. Nafkha, B. Ben Nasr, M. Meriah

First half :

ESS-Ashante Kotoko
Hochgeladen von Footn

There’s an interview with former ESS right back Saber Ben Frej (Le Mans UC 72) and his club’s president, Henri Legarda – maybe trying to hit two birds with a stone : nice vacation in Tunisia and interesting players to add to the transfer list.

Second Half :

ESS-Ashantikotoko suite
envoyé par Footn

Besides Opara, Tembo Fwayo was pretty impressive to watch, and I hope Decastel grants him a regular first team spot. His strength and acumen allow him to assist opportunist strikers like Opara and Bukhari in a very effective way. Nafkha performed well again, proving he’s become the masterpiece of Etoile’s midfield. Meriah confirmed what everybody was expecting along the left sideline. His crosses were, if not necessarily sharp, were well directed and completed Emeka’s skilled headplay.

The only major disappointment was Tarek Ziadi who came in the second half as substitute. I’m starting to think the guy’s a jinx, you only have to see how many times he missed in front of goal. I believe Decastel – who brought him along from CS Sfaxien – wants him to perform really well, but if he’s unable to score with assists from Fwayo and Meriah, the coach has to give someone else a chance too. If it were up to me, we still have 10 days left to sell him

The next fixture will see us pay our algerian neighbours JS Kabylie a visit, and it won’t be an easy one at all. They lost their first game agains Al Merrikh of Sudan 3-1, and another defeat will make them much less likely to take the group’s lead by mid-october.

Good luck to the other tunisian clubs in this competition as well : CS Sfaxien, who crushed Interclube of Angola 4-1 at home, and Club Africain, who unfortunately didn’t know how to manage their second half against egyptian side Haras Al Hodood, and lost 2-1 after a 0-1 lead in Alexandria.

I’d like to finish with a call to the fans of other tunisian clubs, especially Espérance, Club Africain and CS Sfaxien. If you want to make an addition through a blog dedicated to your team, contact Daryl : daryl [at] theoffside.com . It would be great to see tunisian football represented at a wider scale.