Kenyan men plying their trade abroad registered mixed-bag results.
Harambee Stars skipper Michael Olunga scored in a penalty shoot-out to help Al Duhail to the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League as Henry Meja scored for Norrby in the Swedish Svenska Cup.
Sydney Lokale & Sven Yidah
Kenyan compatriots Sven Yidah who turns out for Marumo Gallants and St Eloi Lupopo’s Sydney Lokale both missed their CAF Confederation Cup clash.
South African side Marumo Gallants emerged 2-1 winners against the DR Congo side in a match played at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Zambia despite Lupopo being the hosts.
DR Congo currently does not have a CAF-approved stadium with Lupopo forced to travel to Zambia to host their home clash.
Despite sitting at the bottom of the South African Premier Soccer League, Gallants had a perfect first half with Mpho Mvelase and Ranga Chivaviro giving them a 2-0 head heading into the break.
Patou Kabangu pulled one back for Lupopo in the 82nd minute but it was a little too late for them to mount a comeback as the South African side walked home with three crucial points.
Eliot Matazo
The Kenyan midfielder was handed another start as his AS Monaco side made it five consecutive wins after edging Brest 2-1 in the French Ligue 1.
Matazo was born in Belgium to a mother of Kenyan descent and is still eligible for Harambee Stars having never featured for the senior Belgium National Team.
Monaco opened the scoring through Aleksandr Golovin six minutes before the halftime break as they went on to double their lead in the 73rd minute courtesy of Myron Boadu.
Brest halved the deficit four minutes from time through Jeremy Le Douaron but the goal only proved to be a consolation as Monaco claimed the victory.
Michael Olunga
The former Gor Mahia forward netted in a thrilling penalty shoot-out as his Al Duhail side punched a ticket to the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League at the expense of Al Rayyan.
In the game that saw the two Qatari sides come head to head in the continental showpiece, the teams were kept from finding the back of the net in regular time as the game headed for extra time.
Duhail drew first blood in the 107th minute through Mohammed Muntari but just when they thought they were headed for victory, former Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Steven N’zonzi restored parity in the third minute of added time to send the tie to penalties.
Olunga netted the second penalty as Moufak Awad missed his spot kick in sudden death to ensure Duhail proceeded to the quarter-final where a draw will be conducted before they can find out their opponents.
Henry Meja
The former Tusker FC forward netted his maiden competitive goal for Norrby in the 1-1 draw against Sundsvall in the Swedish Svenska Cup.
Ludvig Navik opened the scoring for Sundsvall three minutes before the halftime break but Norrby resumed the second half much stronger and equalized in the 49th minute through Meja.
The draw leaves Norrby second in Group 3 after opening their campaign with a draw.