After dominating local football for the last two seasons, while also making a small dent on the continent, Jwaneng Galaxy look to take the next step in their evolution on Saturday.
Having made the group stages of Africa’s premier club competition twice in the last three years, Galaxy’s ambitions in the tournament are growing, with their sights now set on reaching the quarterfinals.
Botswana’s best begin their latest assault on Africa with a tricky CAF Champions League opener against the Namibian champions, African Stars.
Both games in the two-legged test will be played at the National Stadium as Namibia does not have a CAF-accredited stadium able to host Champions League encounters.
Saturday’s first leg will count as Stars’ home game while the return fixture takes place at the same venue a week later (24 August).
If Galaxy progress, they are likely to face Orlando Pirates in the next round, with the Buccaneers up against Mauritian minnows, Disciples FC in their preliminary match.
The pair famously met at the same stage last season, when Galaxy claimed a historic win, sending shockwaves through the continent by knocking Pirates out 5-4 on penalties after drawing 1-1 over two legs.
Before they can dream of the Buccaneers, however, the Gala Boys have to get past Stars, in what will be the sides’ first ever meeting.
The Namibians go into the clash full of confidence, with happy recent memories of the National Stadium, beating Township Rollers 1-0 in a friendly there just last week.
Stars were also dominant in their domestic league, the Windhoek-based club losing just four of their 30 games to seal their 7th championship, piping second-placed Ongos to the title by three points.
Speaking to Voice Sport on Wednesday, Galaxy Coach, Morena Ramoreboli revealed preparations were progressing well ahead of what will be the mining giant’s fourth Champions League campaign.
“We have done enough in terms of our preparations during this period. I won’t say I’m entirely happy with the pre-season because the only time you can truly say you’re happy is when you see the results of your work. However, I believe we’ve activated a lot of key elements. We’ve worked hard to be very effective with our game model,” said the highly respected South African tactician, who led Galaxy to a historic league-cup double earlier this year.
Despite only playing a few pre-season friendlies, Ramoreboli explained they were after quality not quantity, choosing their opponents with a specific goal in mind.
“We selected teams with elements we might face in our upcoming fixtures. We’re also fortunate to have everyone back on board, including players like Dunga [Omatatla Kebatho], who missed the entire last season due to injury,” he added.
Galaxy have also been busy in the transfer window, snapping up attacking TAFIC duo: Thabiso Bante and Onkabetse Makganthai, as well as re-signing left-back Benson Mangolo on a season-long loan from Tanzania’s Singida Black Stars.
One star Galaxy will no longer be able to call upon is Daniel Msendami, after the highly rated Zimbabwean winger signed for South African side, Marumo Gallants.
The 23-year-old winger was a key part of Galaxy’s recent success and will be sorely missed.
Ramoreboli, however, told Voice Sport his new signings have integrated into the system well, adding he’s confident they can have a significant impact.
In the last campaign, Galaxy began like a team on fire, following up their Pirates party with an away win against three-time African champions, Wydad AC, dubbed ‘the miracle in Marrakesh’.
They faded badly after that, managing just one point from their final five group games and failing to score a single goal.
On Saturday, they start the journey again, with hopes high of taking the adventure deep into Africa, deeper than any local club has been before….
