Three cup finals to look forward to

Three cup finals to look forward to

By Mark Gleeson

Three major cup finals will be decided over the weekend and on Monday, bringing the curtain down on the club season in Africa and Europe, and kicking off a fortnight of intense national team competition.

The international window opens next Tuesday, 31 May and sees the start of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, as well as the new Nations League campaign.

Before that, however, Mamelodi Sundowns seek to complete the league and cup double as they take on Marumo Gallants in the Nedbank Cup final at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace on Saturday.

Then it will be Liverpool against Real Madrid in Paris on the same evening for the UEFA Champions League with Jurgen Klopp’s men chasing a third cup title this season and Real looking to add to their LaLiga success.

Both finished their respective league campaigns at the weekend, but Liverpool will have concerns after Thiago Alcantara left the pitch early in their come-from-behind win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Real were allowed to play on Friday and drew 0-0 at home with Real Betis but that was overshadowed by the weekend news that Kylian Mbappe has turned them down and is to stay at Paris St Germain.

Monday sees the African Champions League final in Morocco where Wydad Casablanca host Al Ahly. Ideally it should have been played at a neutral venue and the Egyptians are up in arms, but Morocco were the only country to bid for the game and so Al Ahly and the Egyptian Football Association have only themselves to blame.

Pitso Mosimane’s side are looking to become the first side in African football history to win the top title three seasons in a row. It will brand Mosimane as one of the most successful coaches in the history of the African game.

But it is going to be hard for Ahly in Casablanca, where there will be rabid support for the locals as they seek to knock the Cairo giants off their throne.