Simba SC is reeling from an aggregate 6-1 loss to Morocco's other soccer big gun, Raja Club Athletic, in the tournament's Group C clashes that took place on February 18 and March 31.
Raja Club Athletic, also the 2022/23 CAF Champions League quarterfinalist, is another team based in Casablanca with over three million followers.
There is also another difficult match, this season's CAF Confederation Cup's quarterfinal tie between Tanzania's Yanga and Rivers United of Nigeria.
Why were some Yanga fans cheering after the side was paired against Rivers United in the continental showdown's last-eight draw? I still do not understand such a reaction.
Has such a celebration come about because Rivers United has a different price tag to the one that other CAF Confederation Cup group leaders, including Egypt's Pyramids FC, have?
I hardly see the Simba SC against Wydad Athletic Club fixture as an easy clash for the former. I believe that if Simba SC knocks Wydad Athletic Club out then the Tanzanian outfit will go on to win the 2022/23 CAF Champions League title.
It is difficult for Simba SC to beat Wydad Athletic Club for three main reasons. It is also possible that it is difficult for Simba SC to beat any other team that the outfit would be paired against besides Wydad Athletic Club at this stage.
Tanzania's soccer followers may need to only focus on Wydad Athletic Club which has already been paired against Simba SC.
Simba SC will need miracles to overcome its opponent in the coming ties. If a person looks at the way Simba SC was dominated by Raja Club Athletic in both matches in Group Stage and looks at the latter's position in this season's Moroccan Premier League, he/she will know the difficult situation in which the former is in.
Wydad Athletic Club, for several years, turned out to be stronger than Raja Club Athletic and, in reality, the former has surpassed the latter by 12 points in this season's Moroccan Premier League. Raja Club Athletic is lately sitting fifth while Wydad Athletic Club occupies second place.
This just shows soccer followers that Wydad Athletic Club is tougher than Raja Club Athletic in the Moroccan Premier League at the moment, let alone the fact that the former are the defending champions of the CAF Champions League.
There is further a fact that Wydad Athletic Club is confronting Simba SC which continues to re-establish itself.
Simba SC has yet to possess the edge the club had at a time it had players Louis Miquissone, Clatous Chama, Hassan Dilunga, and Rally Bwalya that were shining for it.
The Msimbazi Street squad is lately a club with performers like defender Joash Onyango, whose current form worries the majority of his club's fanatics.
If Simba SC failed to match Raja Club Athletic's pace, will the Tanzanian club manage to withstand Wydad Athletic Club's speed?
The third reason is the fact that the first leg will be played at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Temeke, Dar es Salaam today.
Simba SC will not only need to win but also score a lot of goals against Wydad Athletic Club. Grabbing victory over the Moroccan soccer big gun is something that will surprise many people.
Notching goals in the match against Wydad Athletic Club is one thing, scoring a lot of goals is though completely another feat that will be quite amazing.
Will Simba SC be able to do so? It is clear that Simba SC footballers stand to have the toughest match of their lives in Casablanca, therefore, if they want to try to make it to the next stage, then everything should end in Dar es Salaam.
A few goals that the Tanzanian side will allow in Casablanca is an aspect that can help it make it to the semi-finals, but the team needs to score a lot of goals in Dar es Salaam.
In this weekend's quarterfinal match, regardless of what happens in Dar es Salaam, Wydad Athletic Club will seek to intimidate Simba SC players.
The Moroccan outfit's passionate fans will enter the field with noisy celebrations aiming to motivate their outfit to once again stay on course for progression to the semi-finals while believing that they are going to defend the CAF Champions League silverware.
Whatever it is, Simba SC needs to fight hard to get good results. Suffering a knockout is one thing, but bowing out in a humiliating manner is a quite different experience.
All I know is that when Simba SC plays these kinds of matches, the outfit happens to be a more determined contender, this time the side ought to be more flexible.
Moving on to this season's CAF Confederation Cup, I was surprised to see some Yanga supporters cheer after they learned that their outfit will confront Rivers United in the quarterfinals.
My mind tells me that if Yanga had faced Rivers United 24 months ago, the former would have made it to the CAF Champions League Group Stage.
Yanga was eliminated by Rivers United with a similar result of a 1-0 loss in both home and away fixtures of the continental tournament's First Preliminary Round.
Striker Fiston Mayele and midfielder Khalid Aucho did not play for Yanga in the fixtures because their licenses were delayed.
Yanga also did not have the quality its squad has currently. However, this is a one-sided story, what about Rivers United?
Does Yanga know to what extent has Rivers United improved after the latter faced the former in the last clash in Port Harcourt in the 2021/22 season?
I think Yanga supporters enjoyed witnessing their club being paired against Rivers United because the former avoided Egypt's Pyramids FC and USM Alger of Algeria.
The followers rejoiced because they saw their club was set to take on Rivers United, a club they still remember. It is Rivers United that Yanga locked horns with in two matches and was eliminated.
In Yanga supporters' minds, they would first investigate whether their club will play against Rivers United made up of footballers that possess the same quality or it is a side that is eager to competently challenge for the tournament's top honour.
Likewise, I believe that they are happy because they know that this time they will start their campaign away from home and then finish at home.
They are happy they will do all they can to get either a win or a draw away and then finish the job at home. I hardly believe this because only recently Ugandans have reminded Tanzanians of something.
Tanzania's Taifa Stars went to Ismailia, Egypt, and won 1-0 against Uganda's Cranes in a 2023 AFCON Qualifiers' Group F match. When Taifa Stars returned home for another clash against Cranes at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium, the Tanzanian team suffered a similar defeat to its opponent.
It is a story like that of Simba SC when the outfit made it to the then CAF Clubs Cup tournament's final in 1993.
The Msimbazi Street outfit went to Abidjan, Ivory Coast to play against Stella Abidjan FC and drew 0-0 in the first leg and, in the rematch which took place at the National Stadium, of late known as Uhuru Stadium, Simba SC lost 2-0.
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