African champions Esperance de Tunis will battle Qatari hosts Al-Sadd for fifth place at the on-going 2019 FIFA Club World Cup hosted in Doha.

The 2018-19 CAF Champions League winners suffered a 1-0 loss to 2019 AFC Champions League winners Al-Hilal in a second round clash on Saturday, with a second-half goal from substitute Bafetimbi Gomis leading the Saudi Arabians to victory.

As a result, the Tunisian giants will next battle Al-Sadd in a dead-rubber showdown at Khalifa International Stadium on Tuesday.

The Qatari club beat Hienghène Sport in the opening game of the tournament, but missed out on a place in the semi-finals and a clash against UEFA Champions League holders Liverpool, following a 3-2 loss to Monterrey.

Al-Sadd’s Algerian striker Baghdad Bounedjah is the joint top-scorer at the tournament having netted two goals in his two games.

Since the tournament’s inception in 2000, no African team has claimed a gold medal with the continent’s best finish coming in 2010 and 2013 where TP Mazembe and Raja Casablanca finished as runners-up to Inter and Bayern Munich respectively.

Soka25east.com