Colombian Brayan Leon was the match-winner again for Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa on Saturday, scoring in a 1-0 CAF Champions League semi-final second leg win over Esperance of Tunisia.
The 25-year-old, who joined the Pretoria club from Independiente Medellin three months ago, also notched the only goal of the first leg near Tunis last weekend.
His goals gave Sundowns a 2-0 aggregate victory and they will face Moroccan opponents, either FAR Rabat or Renaissance Berkane, in the two-leg final.
FAR take a 2-0 lead into the second leg of the other semi-final in eastern Moroccan city Berkane later on Saturday.
Seeking a second Champions title, Sundowns will host the first leg of the final in Pretoria on May 15 with the return match in Rabat or Berkane on May 24.
Like Sundowns, FAR have been champions once, conquering Africa in 1985 when the premier continental club competition was called the African Cup of Champions Clubs.
Berkane are competing in the Champions League for the first time after winning the second-tier CAF Confederation Cup three times and been runners-up twice in seven campaigns.
A second leg that attracted a sell-out 40,000 crowd to the Loftus Versfeld stadium in Pretoria, which Sundowns share with the Bulls rugby union side, produced few clearcut scoring chances.
Esperance goalkeeper Bechir Ben Said made a superb one-hand parry to foil Leon midway through the opening half.
When Ben Said later kicked Leon when trying to clear a throw from Ibrahima Keita, the Somali referee pointed to the penalty spot.
Ben Said parried the poorly struck spot kick from Leon, but the South American reacted quickest to push the rebound into the net on 35 minutes.
Esperance almost levelled as half-time approached when a cross struck the body of French striker Florian Danho and came back off the crossbar.
The second half finally came alive after 75 minutes when Ben Said prevented long-range attempts by Chilean Marcelo Allende and Jayden Adams putting Sundowns further ahead.
Four-time African champions Esperance introduced teenage attackers Aboubacar Diakite from Mali and Jack Diarra from Burkina Faso, but they failed to trouble Sundowns’ defence.
AFP
