Stellenbosch FC coach Steve Barker feels “the pressure shifts to Zamalek” after his team earned a well-deserved goalless draw in their first-leg CAF Confederation Cup quarter-final at Cape Town Stadium on Wednesday.
In what has been a glorious couple of days for South African club football, after Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates earned victories in the CAF Champions League, Stellenbosch also showed they deserve a place at the dining table of the continent’s elite football clubs by holding the Egyptian giants scoreless.
Barker’s charges now head to the tip of North Africa with a genuine chance of advancing to a first-ever continental semi-final in next Wednesday’s second leg.
“The main objective was always to go to Cairo having a chance,” Barker said after the first-leg stalemate.
“We didn’t want to go sort of dead and buried.
“I think, not conceding the away goal, I believe the pressure shifts to Zamalek.
“I think with good preparation, now we know what we know, good analysis, and come up with a really good game plan to get it.
“Because as it is, whether they score one or not, even if they score one, we still only have to score one.
“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it, relieved that we’re able to showcase our ability as a team, and kudos to the South African teams.
“I think the last two days, they haven’t conceded a goal.”
The battle for the semi-final spot will be settled in Cairo. 👊#TotalEnergiesCAFCC pic.twitter.com/XglRb7e7Iu
The continental newbies showed good tactical awareness, and pressurised their much more illustrious opponents into conceding possession, particularly in an industrious first half for the home team.
The lack of goal-scoring opportunities for the visitors certainly increased the frustrations of the travelling supporters, with the Ultra White Knights getting into scuffles with each other on the main grandstand.
Fortunately, it did not escalate into the chaos that transpired at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Tuesday afternoon, after the Esperance supporters created mayhem.
But it gave Barker an indication of the cauldron that’s expected next week Wednesday in Cairo.
“I think, you know, you can see they were also cautious, and maybe not prepared to really come out at us. I think they believe that not conceding at all will be a lot stronger... perhaps approach the game a little bit differently,” he said.
“But, yeah, as they’re most used to playing at home with a big crowd, so we’ve got to thrive off it.
“We’ve got to use the crowd to actually emotionally get us engaged. And, you know, we can’t go there fearing the crowd.
“I think we’ve got to use it as a positive and use triggers from the crowd to get us hyped, to be sort of alert, because probably the crowd could get bubbly, and that’s when they’re on the front foot.
“And, yeah, when you have the ball, obviously there’s a lot of whistling until the opposition win it back.
“We’ve learned a little bit of that, and it’ll be a nice learning curve for the players again in Cairo.”
Barker certainly expects Zamalek to be much more offensive in the second leg, especially due to the pressure from their home fans, and he believes this may just work in his team’s favour.
“I do believe at home they’re going to want to play more,” he said.
“I’m not sure what the coach will tell them, but I think the fans will demand that they try and dominate the game better, and have more possession of the ball, which may not be the worst thing to do.”