Nigerian champions Enyimba were ousted from the 2019/20 CAF Champions League (CAFCL) by Al-Hilal Omdurman following their 0-1 loss to the Sudanese side at the Al-Hilal Stadium on Sunday.
Mohammed Eldai’s scorching effort from the edge of the box in the 48th minute was all it took for the Sudanese to advance to the group stage of the competition.
Enyimba started the game well but soon fizzled out in front of the raucous fans of Al-Hilal but the hosts were denied on at least two occasions by Enyimba’s goalkeeper Olufemi Kayode.
Waleed Bakhiet’s effort from close range was kept out by the former Lobi Stars goalkeeper before he again produced a super reflex save to deny Farag’s header midway into the second half.
Sunday’s loss means that both of Nigeria’s Champions League representatives are now eliminated from the competition after Kano Pillars’ defeat in the last round.
However, Enyimba will now drop to the CAF Confederation Cup playoff round where they will meet a team from the winners of the Confederation Cup first round full games.
The draw for the playoff round will be held on Wednesday, 9 October 2019, at the Hilton Pyramids Resort in Cairo, Egypt at 4pm Nigerian time.