Asante Kotoko suffered a narrow 0-1 defeat to Moroccan juggernauts Wydad Athletic Club in the first leg of the second preliminary round of the CAF Confederation Cup.
Winner of this round will advance straight to the group phase of the main competition for the 2025/26 football season.
After what was a very open and balanced first half, the Red Castles returned on a higher note to open the scoring account courtesy Congolese international Joseph Bakasu Banka, who smashed in a deep corner kick delivery into the net in just two minutes into recess.
In a post-match press conference, Kotoko head coach Karim Zito admitted it will be a very difficult game in the return encounter after this defeat but added it’s very possible
“If someone had told me we will loose the game, I wouldn’t have believed based on our preparations but it’s football.
“It’s two legs, we have just played one. They won here so we can also go and win. We’re currently in a very difficult situation but it doesn’t mean overturning the score to qualify isn’t possible.
“We’re not going there as losers, we’re going there to play better than we did here.”
The return encounter is slated for Friday, October 24, at the Stade Mohammed V in Casablanca.
