Ben Youssef Proud As Durban City Make History 

Durban City coach Khalil Ben Youssef was proud of how his players handled themselves as they made history by reaching the second preliminary round of the CAF Confederation Cup.

City defeated Rukinzo 2-1 in the second leg of the first preliminary round in Burundi on Sunday, advancing 3-1 on aggregate.

They will now face Mauritius-based Port Louis, who progressed after defeating Botswana’s Jwaneng Galaxy 2-1 on aggregate.

In the second round of the Confederation Cup, they will be joined by fellow South African side Kaizer Chiefs, who received a bye in the first round because they were ranked higher in the CAF coefficient.

“It was a good two-leg performance from us. We knew what we had to do after the first leg, and the players handled the two games well,” said Ben Youssef.

“Coming here was always going to be a different challenge. You have to adapt to the conditions, the environment and the game itself, and I thought the players did that well.”

City are making their debut in the competition after winning the national cup, the Nedbank Cup, last season.

“We didn’t come here to sit back and protect the first-leg result. We wanted to play, we wanted to score and we wanted to win the game, and we did that,” continued Ben Youssef.

“At 2-0, we were in a strong position, but when they scored, we had to stay calm. I thought the players showed good character to manage the game and see it through.”

Durban City will now travel to face Betway Premiership defending champions Orlando Pirates on Thursday, 17 September, at Orlando Amstel Arena.

“For the club, this is a new experience. We’re learning with every game and every round, and we must keep improving as we go along,” continued Ben Youssef.

“We’re pleased to be through, but that’s what we expected from ourselves. Now we have to recover, get back home and prepare for the next challenge.”