Hearts of Oak head coach Samuel Boadu is confident his side will make it to the group stage of the 2021/22 CAF Champions League following a slim 1-0 win over Wydad Athletic Club (WAC) on Sunday afternoon.
Attacker Isaac Mensah scored in the first half as Hearts of Oak picked up an important 1-0 victory over Wydad Casablanca in the first leg of the CAF Champions League play-off at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Mensah controlled a clever delivery by midfielder Ibrahim Salifu into the net to register the only goal in the game.
The Moroccan champions managed to put the ball in the net in the final minutes, but the goal was correctly ruled offside.
With many doubtful of Hearts chances of qualifying, manager Boadu has assured the club’s supporters to rally behind the team as they make a trip to the North Africa country next weekend for the return leg at the Stade Mohammed V.
According to the gaffer, his team has enormous quality to oust the Moroccans and make it into the group stage of the inter-club competition.
“We have learnt a lot from this game [against WAC]. We’ll surely manage our style of play in the return leg tie for a good outcome in Morocco,” Boadu told reporters after the game
“The fans shouldn’t give up and that’s our motto ‘Never Say Die’. We are travelling to Morocco to qualify for the next stage of the competition”
Considering the result in Accra, any kind of draw in the second leg will be enough to the Phobians through to the group stage for the first time since 2006.
The match will be played on Sunday, October 24 in Casablanca.
