Asante Kotoko of Ghana coach Charles Akonnor was a satisfied man after holding Kenyan side Kariobangi Sharks to a barren draw in the first leg first round of the Caf Confederation Cup played at Kasarani stadium on Saturday.
Kotoko seemingly came into this match to avoid defeat as witnessed after the final whistle when the entire technical bench jumped into celebration.
The 24-time Ghanaian champions will host the SportPesa Shield winners in Kumasi next Saturday with a win enough to take them to the playoff round.
“We are satisfied because we didn’t lose, we’ve taken a point now we’ve to go back home and do a good homework to win next Saturday,” Akonnor told journalists in a post-match interview,
He added: “This is an away match against a team that scored six goals in the last match, we must be satisfied with this good result. We know what to do to win at home because our target is to qualify.”
The former Ghanaian international hailed his players for playing to instructions.
“Tactically we were disciplined, we made it difficult for them, and they are a solid team that has played together for a long time,” he concluded.
“Tactically we were disciplined, we made it difficult for them, and they are a solid team that has played together for a long time,” he concluded.
On his side, Sharks coach William Muluya put up a brave face despite his arsenals wasting numerous scoring chances.
“It’s a good performance only that we didn’t score but I believe if we score away pressure will get back at them. I still believe that we can make it to the next round,” he said.
“We will work on how to score while in Ghana because any scoring draw will take us through,” concluded Muluya who tipped the availability of his injured striker Sydney Lokale in the return leg.
Sharks shift focus to their rescheduled league fixture against Sony Sugar on Tuesday at Kasarani.