Congolese sports news is in turmoil with the start of the football season, which sees the country’s biggest teams compete. Among them, Tout-Puissant Mazembe, accustomed to victories and titles, seems to have had a rather sluggish start to the championship.
Indeed, the Ravens, nickname of TP Mazembe, recorded a defeat against Football Club Saint Eloi Lupopo during an electric derby in Lubumbashi. The score of 0-1 in favor of Lupopo caused disappointment among Mazembe supporters, who even disrupted the game with acts of vandalism. A situation that forced the referee to interrupt the match for a few minutes.
After this setback, TP Mazembe currently finds itself in 10th place in the ranking, with only 2 points in three games played. With two previous draws against AS Malole and FC Tanganyika, this defeat against Lupopo shows a certain fragility in the team’s performances.
For its part, Lupopo has 6 points in two games, which allows it to settle in 4th place in the provisional ranking. The competition in the Illicocash Ligue 1 national championship therefore promises to be tight, with teams like AS Simba, who beat US Panda B52 of Likasi, or AS Malole and FC Blessing, who neutralized each other on a score of 0-0.
In Group A, it is FC Tanganyika who takes the lead with 10 points in 4 games, thus confirming its position as favorite in the competition. For its part, Group B in Kinshasa sees balanced matches, like the draw between Daring Club Motema Pembe and AC Rangers.
This football season promises to be full of twists and turns and emotions, with teams fighting for victory and recognition. TP Mazembe will have to pull itself together quickly if it wants to claim the title, otherwise its rivals will take the lead. The next few days promise to be decisive, and each match will be an opportunity for the teams to show their talent and determination on the Congolese pitches.