"Meta 3" explains the loss of the Royal Army.

The Royal Army football team failed to achieve the African Champions League title for the second time in its history, after drawing yesterday, Sunday, at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat against its guest Mamelodi Sundowns from South Africa, with one goal for each team, knowing that the latter had won the first leg on its home ground with a score of one goal to none.

Following the loss, guests on the "Mita 3" program, broadcast by Hespress, considered that the army did not present a performance worthy of winning the title, especially given the limited options of the coach and the lack of substitute players capable of making a difference.

In this context, sports critic Mohamed Maghoudi stated that the Royal Army was defeated by a team whose players mostly form the nucleus of the South African national team, confirming that there is a flaw within the army due to the lack of mental readiness of the players before this decisive match.

Maghoudi explained that the army revealed many weaknesses in the match, such as its defense line, which was not at a high level, in addition to the absence of a goal-scoring striker who knows how to find the net, and the lack of a bench capable of compensating for the main players.

The same speaker pointed out that Sundowns did not steal the title, but rather earned it fairly and squarely, criticizing the Royal Army coach Santos, who did not manage the final well, unlike Sundowns coach Cardoso, who has accumulated enough experience, having played in the continental final for the third consecutive time.

For his part, former international player Hicham Al-Amrani considered that the army lost the title on its home ground and among its fans, especially since the team returned from Pretoria with a result that remains positive, given the immense pressure and the many clear chances that the South African team squandered in the first leg.

Al-Amrani added that the army's good handling of the return match would have been sufficient to keep the title in Rabat, confirming that its pressure during the first half of the match lacked the ferocity that could have unsettled the opponent.

The same speaker further stated that the match was characterized by tactical commitment and the "football cunning" that Mamelodi Sundowns has now mastered, unlike in the past, noting that the army should have handled the opportunities that came its way better, especially the penalty missed by team captain Mohamed Rabi Hrimat.

The former army player considered that the failure of the "military team" to maintain its lead in the first half, along with Sundowns' success in equalizing before heading to the locker rooms, played a significant role in the course of the match, especially since the equalizing goal came from a mistake by the army's defense.