Holders Al Ahly of Egypt and long-time rivals Tunisia’s Esperance will face off in a two-legged CAF Champions League final in May.
Ahly beat TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo 3-0 in Cairo to win a semi-final by the same scoreline on aggregate after a goalless first leg last Saturday.
Esperance came under constant pressure from South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns in Pretoria before winning 1-0 to move 2-0 up overall after also winning 1-0 at home.
Mohamed Abdelmonem, Wessam Abou Ali and Akram Tawfik scored in the second half for Ahly, who are aiming for a record 12th victory in Africa’s premier club competition.
Raed Bouchniba came off the bench to score 12 minutes into the second half against Sundowns in a match that lasted 190 minutes after a storm halted play midway through the first half.
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This will be the third time Ahly and Esperance have met in the Champions League final, with the Egyptians having won in 2012 and the Tunisians in 2018.
They also met in the semi-finals last season, with Ahly winning home and away for a 4-0 aggregate triumph.
Both clubs booked their final place after 11 clean sheets in 12 qualifying, group and knockout matches.
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Esperance, seeking a fifth Champions League title, will host the first leg in Radès, a suburb of Tunis, on May 18, and the return match in Cairo seven days later.
Sundowns had their chances against Esperance with Peter Shalulile and Aubrey Modiba hitting the woodwork and Namibia captain Shalulile going close on several occasions.
But the first time Esperance threatened to score, they did so when a counter-attack ended with Bouchniba rushing into the box and firing at goalkeeper Ronwen Williams in the far corner.
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Since their sole Champions League title in 2016, Sundowns have reached the semi-finals three times and lost each time to North African opponents.
In Cairo, Joel Beya had a goal denied for Mazembe early in the second half before Abdelmonem’s powerful header from a corner broke the deadlock in the 68th minute.
A superb cross from veteran Tunisian defender Ali Maaloul was fired into the net by Abou Ali in the 83rd minute for his first goal of the African campaign.
Tawfik scored in the 12th minute of added time by rushing and sending the ball past Senegalese goalkeeper Alioune Faty in the far corner.
