CAF CL: Kenya Police suffer puncture in march to group stages following defeat to Sudanese giants
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Reading Time: 3min | Fri. 17.10.25. | 17:30
The result means that Police must win the return leg by a bigger margin so as to book a place in the group stages
Sudanese giants Al Hilal took a crucial step toward the CAF Champions League group stages after narrowly edging Kenya Police FC 1–0 in the first leg of the second preliminary round played on Friday,17 October evening at the Ulinzi Sports Complex.
Adama Coulibaly's solitary strike, in the 20th minute, made the difference in a tightly contested encounter, giving the visitors a vital advantage ahead of the return leg tie next weekend.
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Kenya Police, under coach Etienne Ndayiragije, began brightly and nearly broke the deadlock early on through Erick Zakayo.
The former Tusker winger combined neatly with Marvin Nabwire, but his rising effort skimmed over the bar to the relief of the Sudanese backline.
Al Hilal responded almost immediately through Salah Adil, who raced to meet Sunday Adetunji’s delivery, only for David Ochieng to intervene with a decisive block.
Moments later, Police came close again when Misuri Exaule beat his marker before drilling a low drive towards goal after being picked out by Zakayo, but goalkeeper Soufiane Farid stretched full-length to keep the ball out.
However, five minutes after the quarter-hour mark, Al Hilal found the breakthrough. Coulibaly, unmarked inside the box, calmly slotted past the advancing Job Ochieng to hand the visitors a slender lead.
The goal spurred Kenya Police into action. Tobias Otieno, the former Gor Mahia and Sony Sugar midfielder, unleashed a powerful long-range effort that nearly caught Farid off guard, but the alert custodian reacted sharply to deny him.
Al Hilal continued to pose a threat on the counter, with Walieldin Poga forcing another smart save from Ochieng after being set up by Adetunji.
Police had a golden opportunity to equalize just before halftime when Samuel Ayanrinde failed to convert from close range after a fine pass from Exaule.
On resumption, Étienne introduced Edward Omondi and David Okoth for Exaule and Zakayo to inject fresh impetus in attack.
Omondi almost made an instant impact, firing wide after a clever lay-off from Otieno.
Minutes later, Okoth rose highest to connect with Nabwire’s cross, but Farid produced an outstanding one-handed save to deny the equalizer.
Sensing a shift in momentum, Al Hilal’s Romanian coach Laurențiu Reghecampf made his own changes, bringing on Madik Claude for Abdul Raouf to stabilize the midfield.
The visitors regained control, dictating play and nearly doubling their lead when Adetunji missed from close range following a superb delivery from Salah Adil.
The closing stages saw Police commit numbers forward in search of an equalizer.
Substitutes Clinton Kinanga and Albert Otieno came close, Kinanga’s header from Geoffrey Ochieng’s cross sailed inches wide, while Otieno’s late effort from the edge of the box was deflected by defender Ebulea.
Despite Kenya Police’s relentless pressure, Al Hilal’s defensive discipline stood tall as they held firm to claim a valuable away win.
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The defeat leaves Kenya Police with a mountain to climb ahead of the return leg in a week's time, where they must secure victory by a convincing margin to keep their hopes of reaching the CAF Champions League group stage alive.
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