With a defeat against Raja (2-0) in the third day of the Champions League group stage, Horoya AC is second in the group with 4 points. With this new defeat, the record of the Guinean champion against the representatives of North African countries in interclubs is more negative than ever.
The days are similar for Horoya AC when it comes to facing clubs from the North in interclub competition. Traveling to Casablanca to challenge Raja last Saturday, the Guinean champion lost by a score of 2-0. A new defeat against the Moroccan club that questions the sports journalist Amadou Major Diallo. “It is a situation that has become recurrent in recent times. Many factors can explain this situation. From the point of view of infrastructure, they are ahead with a relatively professional championship, “said the colleague.
Over the last four games against Raja, Horoya remains on a record of one win and three defeats. And not a single success on Moroccan soil with three defeats (2-0, 5-0 and 2-0) and three draws against Wydad (1-1, 0-0, 0-0). Apart from a victory against Raja last season in Conakry, the record is not very good for the eight-time champion of Guinea. Results against clubs in the north that are increasingly questionable. For the sports journalist Amadou Major Diallo, nothing surprising in view of the lack of organization of the Guinean championship. “Morocco has the best championship on the continent. There is a real organization around its clubs. So to see the sub-Saharan clubs, especially Horoya, suffer on this side is not surprising. In our country the professionalization is not effective. There is a total disorder and no structure is put in place over time. People want results immediately and it doesn’t work like that,” he says.
The psychological aspect
In these confrontations with these northern clubs, Horoya AC has never won away to its opponent. Against Entente Sportive Setifienne last season in the group stage, the Guinean champion came close to scoring with five minutes left in regulation time before finally losing (3-2). With this defeat of Casablanca against Raja (2-0), the club now has a negative record of 7 consecutive defeats on the road against North African clubs.
According to Amadou Major, this is due to the difficulties of the eight-time champion of Guinea to manage the pressure during major events. ” Horoya is not far to titillate the best clubs of the continent. But seeing the configuration of HAC against Raja, it seems that the club was playing for a draw. So psychologically the club was already beaten before the game. It is a problem of level but also psychological. This is what is reflected on the field. But it will be necessary to work much more on the psychological aspect”, he insists.
“In these countries of the Maghreb, the fans play a very big role in the stadiums with the atmosphere they put. All this contributes to destabilize the opponent knowing that the Horoya AC is used to play in stadiums virtually empty in Guinea, “continues Amadou Major. He warns: “This atmosphere in the stadiums is part of the beauty of soccer. The clubs must manage this pressure. We can’t reach the top without being able to beat the best teams.”
Second in their group after the first leg with 4 points, Horoya sees Simba of Tanzania come within one point. In a few days, the Guinean champion will receive Raja Casablanca in Bamako (Mali). With the ambition to make the leader fall to accentuate its lead over its pursuers and maintain its chances of qualification for the quarterfinals. But to complete this mission, the eight-time champion of Guinea will have to have stronger nerves.
