Liberian National First Division Champions, Watanga Football Club, has concluded their third interclub campaign at the Confederation of African Football (CAF) without a single win in over four games across three years.
During this period, the club made two appearances in the CAF Champions League and one in the CAF Confederation Cup, representing Liberia for three consecutive years.
Despite their efforts, Watanga has been unable to advance past the preliminary stages to reach the main rounds of either competition. Watanga earned their first Liberian league title at the end of the 2021-2022 season, marking their debut in the 2022-2023 CAF Champions League.
However, they were eliminated by Nigeria’s Rivers United in the first round. The following season, Watanga won the Orange/FA Cup and represented Liberia in the CAF Confederation Cup.
Unfortunately, they were again knocked out in the first preliminary round by Stade De Malian of Mali. Most recently, as 2023-2024 LFA league champions, Watanga returned to the CAF Champions League, where they faced MC Algiers of Algeria in the first preliminary round.
Watanga suffered a 2-0 defeat in each leg, losing 4-0 on aggregate. Despite the disappointing results, Watanga views this period as a learning experience for the club.
Speaking at a post-match press conference following their defeat to MC Algiers, Coach Cooper Sannoh emphasized that this is only the third time in the club’s history they have participated in a CAF competition.
He acknowledged the challenges of traveling from West Africa to North Africa for the matches and expressed optimism for future tournaments. Watanga’s Vice Captain, Chauncy Freeman, attributed the team’s loss in part to disruptive fan behavior, alleging that fans threw stones and other objects at the players during the first match.
Coach Sannoh vowed that Watanga will deliver better results in future international competitions when given the opportunity.
