African Stars coach Bob Mafoso believes they can still beat Ugandan champions SC Vipers despite suffering a 1-0 defeat in Cape Town on Friday.
Vipers defender Hillary Mukundane scored the solitary goal after only 13 minutes in their CAF Champions League qualifier first leg encounter at the Athlone Stadium in Cape Town, to give the Ugandan champions the edge heading into their second leg encounter in Uganda next weekend.
Mafoso, however, believes that they can turn the tie around with a winning result in the second leg.
"With the performance that we had, especially in the second half, I think this result can be turned around, and I think with the attitude, the confidence and the performance that we had in the second half, we will be able to come back with a result," he said.
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"This is not a difficult one, in the sense that we just need to score and not concede to at least stretch it to the next phase, and I believe we can turn it around," he added.
Mafoso said they got off to a poor start.
"We had a horrible first 10 to 20 minutes in the first half when Vipers were all over us. We couldn't deal with the pressure and the intensity until we conceded that goal, but it was only after conceding the goal that we started to play. These are the small margins that always make a difference in these type of games," he said.
"We had a few players who did not come to the party in the first half which is understandable, and I think one might say that was to be expected. But I think it was generally a game that did not have many chances for both teams, although I think we controlled most of the phases of the second half, though they were just not enough for us to win the game," he added.
Vipers came out attacking from the start, winning an early corner, but Stars' keeper Mervin Kasetura managed to keep them at bay with a fine diving save.
Stars' defence also cleared another corner but Vipers' early pressure finally told when their central defender Mukundane deflected a shot by Karim Watambala into the net.
Yunus Sentamu and Gusto Mulongo also came close for the Vipers, but Stars started creating some chances of their own as the match progressed.
Vevengapi Mbuende was just too late to latch onto a Tuli Nashixwa throughball into Vipers' box, while Charles Hambira had a header well saved from a freekick.
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Chances were few and far between in the second half with most of the action in the middle of the park, but Edmar Kamatuka kept Vipers' defence alert with his tricky runs while he also had a freekick that deflected off the wall.
Stars remained in Cape Town, and will now fly to Uganda tomorrow in preparation for their second leg encounter at St Mary's Stadium in Kitende next weekend.
The winning team on aggregate will take on the aggregate winner between Zambian champions Power Dynamos and Ivory Coast champions ASEC Mimosa in the second qualifying round.
Power Dynamos took the early advantage in their tie after winning the first leg 1-0 at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola on Saturday. Midfielder Innocent Kashita scored the winning goal in the eighth minute of the match.
Young African, meanwhile, also got off to a losing start in their CAF Confederations Cup first leg qualifier against Royal Leopards of Eswatini.
Second half goals by Simanga Masangane in the 59th minute and Thembisa Shabangu in the 77th minute gave the Leopards a 2-0 advantage, heading into their second leg encounter at the Somhlolo Stadium in Lobamba, Eswatini next Friday, 26 September.
