Gor Mahia land Burundian side in Champions League

What you need to know:

  • The aggregate winner of the first round will meet either USM Algers of Algeria or Niger's Sonidep in the second round
  • Meanwhile, SportPesa Shield holders Bandari will take on Sudan's Al Ahly Shandy in the preliminary round of the Confederation Cup

  • The Dockers will be making a return to the continental competition for the first time since 2016 when they were eliminated by DR Congo side St Eloi Lupopo

Record Kenyan champions Gor Mahia have been drawn against Aigle Noir CS of Burundi in the preliminary round of the Confederation of African Football (Caf) Champions League.

Gor Mahia coach Hassan Oktay will be looking to guide K'Ogalo to the moneyed stages of Africa's premier club competition.

The 46-year-old Turkish-Cypriot has a huge burden on his shoulder - that of guiding Gor to the lucrative group stage of the Champions League.

Last year they narrowly missed out on the group stage after going down 0-2 against Nigeria's Lobi Stars in Enugu, Nigeria. Gor had won the first leg of this first round tie 3-1 in Nairobi, but could not defend their two-goal margin, eventually crashing out on away goals rule after the teams tied 3-3 on aggregate.

The Nigerians benefitted from the valuable goal they scored at Kasarani Stadium, as they locked out Gor Mahia from getting on the scoreboard at home. To reach this level, K’Ogalo saw off a resilient Malawi's Nyasa Bullets on penalties after a 1-1 score on aggregate. Gor had won the first leg 1-0 but lost with a similar margin in Malawi.

Oktay's charges will begin their Champions League journey against Aigle Noir CS who bagged the 2018/19 Burundi Premier League title with 68 points from 30 matches. The aggregate winner of the first round will meet either USM Algers of Algeria or Niger's SONIDEP in the second round.

Meanwhile, SportPesa Shield holders Bandari will take on Sudan's Al Ahly Shandy in the preliminary round of the Confederation Cup.

The Dockers will be making a return to the continental competition for the first time since 2016 when they were eliminated by DR Congo side St Eloi Lupopo.

The aggregate winner will face either Tunisia's US Ben Guerdane or South Sudan's Amarat in the next round.