Pyramids v APR: Novic hoping for ‘better result’ than 2023 humiliation
Thursday, September 19, 2024
APR FC will face Pyramids in in the second leg match at the June 30 Stadium in Cairo. Photo by Olivier Mugwiza

APR head coach Darko Novic insists his side is aiming for a better away outcome against Pyramids than last season when the pair face off at the June 30 Stadium in Cairo in the second leg of the 2024/25 CAF Champions League second round on Saturday, September 21.

The Rwanda champions were thumped 6-1 by the Egyptians at the same venue in the same stage of the competition on September 29, 2023 but Novic fired a warning to the home side that it will be a different story.

The first leg in Kigali ended 1-1 and Novic is convinced that all is not lost and remains confident that his charges can pull a major upset away from home.

"Pyramids is one of the best teams in the North African region. Last season, the result against them wasn&039;t good but this season we are aiming to do something better,” Novic told the press on Wednesday.

"Expectations are high from Rwandans and everybody. We hope to go all out. I think we have a good team and we can do well."

More often, the climate in North Africa has been a worry to most of the teams who go there. However, Novic maintains that the current weather in Egypt is good and that won't be an excuse.

"The weather in the Mediterranean Sea is conducive and it will not have effects on us because we have experienced this kind of weather before," he noted.

APR are chasing their first appearance in the CAF Champions League Group stage. Their best performance on continental club level was in the 2003/2004 season when they reached the semifinals of the erstwhile CAF Cup Winners Cup.