Table of Contents
Aubrey Modiba curled the free kick into the top corner in the 37th minute and Loftus Versfeld erupted. The first leg of the CAF Champions League final ended 1-0. Mamelodi Sundowns lead on aggregate. The second leg is in Rabat on Saturday. Everything that was decided on Sunday now has to be defended and added to in conditions that are as difficult as anything the CAF Champions League produces.
The Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium sold out before the first leg was played. Over half a million fans queued for tickets. AS FAR Rabat last reached a continental final in 1985 and won it. Their supporters have been waiting 41 years for this moment and they will make that felt from the opening whistle on Saturday night. Sundowns have never won a CAF Champions League match in Morocco. That record, which existed before Sunday's first leg and survived it untested since the match was in Pretoria, now has to be confronted directly.
What Sundowns Got Right and What They Left Behind
The first leg at Loftus Versfeld produced 71% possession for Sundowns, 11 shots, and 0.83 expected goals. AS FAR produced 0.20 xG. The gap in attacking quality was not close. The score was 1-0 because Tagnaouti was exceptional. Brayan Leon missed two clear chances in the second half. Kutlwano Letlhaku was denied by Tagnaouti's legs from close range. Teboho Mokoena's late free kick hit the post with the goalkeeper beaten. A 1-0 lead reflects the effort and the result. It does not reflect how the match was played.
The finishing problem is the thing Cardoso spent the week addressing in training. In Rabat, AS FAR will have more of the ball than their 29% share at Loftus Versfeld. The chances Sundowns create will be fewer. When they arrive, they cannot be wasted the way Leon's one-on-one in the 67th minute was wasted, Tagnaouti winning it with his legs from a position where the correct finish should have made it 2-0. Cardoso's post-match message was controlled but clear: the squad knows. The second leg will demand more from the strikers than the first.
Kekana Returns, The Defence Is Rebuilt
Grant Kekana's suspension was served in the first leg. He returns for Rabat and his presence rebuilds the defensive structure that was thinned by the absence of both himself and the long-term injured Mothobi Mvala on Sunday. Cardoso's decision to play three attacking midfielders without a defensive screen at Loftus Versfeld was a calculated home risk. In Morocco, defending a one-goal lead while remaining a counter-attacking threat is a different tactical brief. Kekana's return gives Cardoso more options and more defensive reliability in a match where conceding early would fundamentally alter Sundowns's position.
The VAR delay that disrupted the second half of the first leg, during which AS FAR's players initially refused to resume without the system operational before eventually agreeing, will not be a factor in Rabat. The focus on Saturday is straightforward: Sundowns need to score to extend the lead or hold what they have. AS FAR need a single goal to level the aggregate.
What AS FAR Carry Into Saturday
Alexandre Santos told reporters after the first leg that he expects his side to win more possession in Rabat. Tagnaouti's performance across 90 minutes at Loftus Versfeld demonstrated what is possible when an elite goalkeeper is given a disciplined defensive structure behind him. AS FAR did not concede a first-half goal in any match across the entire competition. They have conceded five goals in ten matches total. Santos's team will come out on Saturday believing the 1-0 deficit is precisely what it should be: a single goal that keeps everything alive.
The crowd will do the rest. AS FAR's semi-final against RS Berkane at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium produced an atmosphere that the Moroccan players have described as the most intense they have experienced at club level. Against Sundowns, with a continental title within reach for the first time since 1985, that intensity will be magnified. Sundowns are an experienced continental side. Cardoso has been in three consecutive CAF Champions League finals. What Loftus Versfeld produced on Sunday has prepared this squad for pressure. Whether Rabat on Saturday night produces more pressure than they have encountered this season is the question that will be answered in real time.
The Numbers That Define the Second Leg
Sundowns are unbeaten across their last 11 home CAF Champions League matches. Their away record in Morocco is zero wins from two previous trips. AS FAR have lost five of their eight knockout away games in this competition's history but have not lost away from home at this stage of the competition in the current campaign. The prize money confirmed by CAF President Motsepe is $6 million USD to the winners, a 50% increase on previous years, alongside qualification for the 2026 FIFA Intercontinental Cup and the 2029 Club World Cup.
Sundowns last won the CAF Champions League in 2016. AS FAR last won a continental title in 1985. One of those waits ends on Saturday. Second leg: May 24, Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat. Kickoff: 21h00 local (19h00 GMT). Broadcast: SuperSport, beIN Sports, SABC 1.
