Rulani Mokwena: ‘Al Ittihad made game difficult’

Al-Ittihad SC coach Rulani Mokwena says his team made the Libyan Premier League game against Ittihad Misrata difficult on Monday.

Aziz ki gave Al-Ittihad an early lead in the 11th minute, but substitute Mohamed Jamal equalized late in the 83rd minute from a set piece at Tripoli International Stadium.

Reflecting on the result, the former Mamelodi Sundowns mentor insisted that his team could have easily won the match if the players had applied themselves fully in decisive moments of the game.

What went wrong for Al Ittihad?

“We are on a mission to find information about our team and about our players,” Mokwena told his club’s media.

“We knew that the game would be difficult against a good team. They have some very good players with a lot of quality and experience.”

The South African suggested that his charges played into the hands of the opponents especially when dealing with second balls.

“In certain moments, we made the game difficult for ourselves and struggled a little bit with the second balls,” said the coach.

“Especially after we scored the first goal, they got more aggressive pressing with three or four players.”

What result means for Al-Ittihad

The result saw Al-Ittihad maintain top spot with 39 points, while Al-Ittihad Misrata reached 24 points, officially securing qualification to the championship round.

Group B Standings After Penultimate Round – Libyan Premier League

Following the conclusion of Round 8 in Group B of the Libyan Premier League, the standings are as follows:

Al-Ittihad Tripoli – 39 points

Al Olympi – 31 points

Al-Ittihad Misrata – 24 points

Al-Majd – 20 points

Al-Shomoua – 19 points

Shabab Al-Ghar – 18 points

Al-Tersana – 16 points

Ittihad Gharyan – 10 points

Abi Al Ashhar – 3 points

Qualified Teams:

Al-Ittihad Tripoli, Al Olympi, and Al-Ittihad Misrata have officially qualified for the final stage (Championship Round).

Relegated Teams:

Abi Al Ashhar, Ittihad Gharyan, and Al-Tersana have been officially relegated.

Final Round Fixtures:

Al-Majd vs Al Olympi

Al-Ittihad Misrata vs Shabab Al-Ghar

Abi Al Ashhar vs Al-Shomoua

Ittihad Gharyan vs Al-Ittihad Tripoli