Rulani Mokwena's MC Alger suffer defeat in CAFCL opener | OneFootball

Rulani's MCA beaten in CAFCL curtain raiser

Photo: MCA @ Facebook

Rulani Mokwena's MC Alger suffered a 2-1 defeat at the hands of 10-man Al-Hilal Omdurman in their group stage opener in Kigali, Rwanda on Friday.

The Sudanese giants broke the deadlock through Abdelrazig Omer, who pounced on an assist from Jean-Claude Girumugisha on the stroke of half-time.

Mokwena's men responded in the 53rd minute as Mustafa Karshom put the ball in his own net after relentless pressure from the visitors.

Hilal retained the lead in the 75th minute, thanks to substitute Mohammed Abdel-Rahman, who found the back of the net just seconds after entering the fray.

The home team was reduced to 10-man as Salaheldin Alhassan received his marching orders for a second bookable offence with three minutes of regulation time left.

For the South African mentor, it was his first defeat since taking charge of MCA during the off-season after parting ways with Moroccan heavyweights Wydad Casablanca.

The Algerian champions sit at the bottom of Group C standings, while Mamelodi Sundowns are set to host FC Saint-Eloi Lupopo at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Saturday.