'First-half mistakes cost us against JS Kabylie' â?? Bibiani GoldStars coach Frimpong Manso

Bibiani GoldStars head coach Frimpong Manso placed the blame squarely on errors in the first half for his team’s 2-0 loss to Algeria’s JS Kabylie in the first leg of their CAF Champions League preliminary round.

Medhi Merghem opened the scoring in the 21st minute with a brilliant connection from a right-wing cross, and Babacar Sarr doubled the lead in the 70th minute after some lax defending from a corner left no one marking him.

Manso says GoldStars lost control early on. “I think it was a difficult game, and we made too many mistakes in the first half," he said after the game.

"To be frank, playing against such a team, if you start to lose passes in the midfield, you always find yourself wanting. So for me, especially in the first half, we didn’t play well."

The result makes the second leg much tougher for GoldStars, who will need to overturn the deficit in Algeria to advance. They have one week until the return fixture to address their defensive lapses and sharpen their attacking transitions.

JS Kabylie’s win gives them a safer cushion, but GoldStars will go into the second leg determined to make amends and show they are not easily dispatched.

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