Lobi Stars of Makurdi defender, Solomon Kwambe has stated happiness with his side’s qualification on Wednesday for the next stage of the CAF Champions League and says they are ready to take on former winners, Gor Mahia of Kenya.
Kwambe said Thursday morning on a radio sports programme monitored by footballive.ng in Lagos that his team’s 2-0 spanking of Cameroon’s USM de Loum is a pointer to their ability to go far in the continental elite clubs’ money-spinning competition.
Gor Mahia needed penalties to eliminate Nyasa Big Bullets of Malawi, as they romped ahead 5-4 on aggregate, after the Kenyans won 1-0 in the first leg, but lost the reverse fixture by the same margin away.
K’Ogalo should thank their keeper Boniface Oluoch, who saved two penalties to help the side progress to the first round, while Lobi Stars beat Cameroon side UMS de Loum 2-0, after a first leg 1-0 defeat away.
In the first match, Jean Abadan scored the only goal of the game as the Cameroonian side held on for the win at home and not conceding a goal in front of their supporters.
Though the second leg was shifted to Nnamdi Azikwe Stadium, as the military airport in Makurdi could not receive De Loum’s international flight, Lobi Stars defied all odss to win 2-0, much to Kwambe’s delight.
Lobi Stars got the lead through Sikiru Alimi in the 14th minute and the Nigerian champions scored the winner in the 69th minute, when Yaya Kone converted a penalty, for them to book a date with Gor Mahia.
The Kenyans will host the first leg in Nairobi between December 14 and 16, while the second will be in Nigeria between December 21 and 23, ahead of which Kwambe said Lobi Stars will be ready to shine again.
“We are happy that we won in Enugu. Although we wanted to play the match in Makurdi, it was shifted to Enugu.
“We thank God we were still able to win. Now we are waiting for the team from Kenya, and I am sure we will be them too,” said Kwambe.
