- Kenya Police FC suffered a 0-1 defeat at home to Sudanese giants Al Hilal Omdurman in the first leg of the 2025/26 CAF Champions League second preliminary round.
- The match was staged at the Ulinzi Sports Complex on Friday, October 17.
- Adama Coulibaly scored the decisive goal for the Sudanese side early in the first half.
Kenya Police FC’s quest for a maiden CAF Champions’ League group stage spot got off to a rocky start, as they suffered a narrow 0-1 defeat at home to Sudanese giants Al Hilal Omdurman in the first leg of the 25/26 second preliminary round.
The match was held behind closed doors at the Ulinzi Sports Complex on Friday afternoon, with only a few individuals granted access to the stadium.
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After 19 minutes of probing, the visitors broke the deadlock through Adama Coulibaly. The winger found space inside the box to fire Al Hilal into the lead.
The goal originated from a misplaced back-pass by Charles Ouma. As Ouma attempted to recover, his clearance was blocked by Abdel Rouf.
The deflection fell favourably to Coulibaly on the right wing, who then outpaced Brian Okoth to burst into the area and slot the ball home, giving his team the advantage heading in the first half.
Laurentie Aurelienne’s squad nearly doubled their advantage in the 26th minute. A powerful Stephen Ebuela volley from the right wing found Sunday Adetunji, whose header was superbly saved by Job Ochieng, keeping the Law Enforcers in the contest.
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Ochieng was called into action again just three minutes later, pulling off another crucial save to deny a long-range effort from Ebuela that was headed for the top corner.
Despite Kenya Police creating some promising chances after conceding, they could not find an equalizer as Al Hilal held firm, taking their lead into the break.
Five minutes into the second half, coach Etienne Ndayiragije made a double substitution in search of a spark, introducing Edward Omondi and David Okoth for Eric Zakayo and Exaule Misuri to bolster the attack.
While Police dominated possession, their fortunes in front of goal did not significantly improve.
The home side squandered three clear chances to level the score, with Marvin Nabwire and Edward Omondi both failing to convert, leaving the match to finish with the visitors holding a slender advantage.
Kenya Police must now put in the work to overturn the deficit in the second leg. They will need to score at least two goals to advance when they face the same opponents next Friday, October 24, at the Martyrs of February Stadium in Libya.
Kenya Police vs Al Hilal CAF Champions League Lineups
- Kenya Police FC: Job Ochieng, Baraa Badi, Daniel Sakari, Brian Okoth, David Cheche, Charles Ouma, Tobias Otieno, Marvin Nabwire, Eric Zakayo, Samuel Ayanride, Exaule Misuri.
- Al Hilal Lineup: Soufiane, Ebuela, Karshoum, Diouf, Luzolo, Petrus, Salah, Walieldin, Abdel Raouf, Coulibaly, Sunday.