After suffering a deflating 2-0 loss at the hands of Egyptian moneybags Pyramids FC in the first leg of the CAF Champions League (CAFCL) preliminary round, Gor Mahia fans have expressed mixed reactions.The two sides met in the first leg of the CAFCL preliminary round on Sunday, 6 September, at Nyayo National Stadium, where the visitors secured a crucial away victory.Download our Mozzart Sport App for more newsMoments after K’Ogalo missed a glorious opportunity to take the lead, Pyramids broke the deadlock in the fifth minute through Walid El-Khati before Egypt international Mahmoud Saber doubled the advantage at the stroke of halftime.##NAJAVA_MECA_9936459##Gor Mahia staged a spirited performance in the second half, but it was not enough to overturn the damage inflicted in the opening 45 minutes.Mozzart Sport caught up with Gor Mahia fans after the final whistle, who offered divergent views on the defeat.“I honestly believe that Gor Mahia had a good game. We conceded largely due to individual mistakes and the quality of the opponent.Former Harambee Stars midfielder obtains UEFA A coaching license in BelgiumIn the second half, for instance, we were the better side and forced them to sit back and absorb pressure. We were particularly dangerous after the introduction of Jackson Dwang, who brought some spark into our attack.Nonetheless, we must also admit that we lost to a team that is a class above us. Logically, there was no way we were going to beat them. We just needed to show that we could compete and put up a respectable performance, which I believe we did,” said Voxxy Msela.Msela’s sentiments were echoed by Allan Okumu, who also believed the Kenyan giants faced an uphill task against the Egyptian giants.Why Akonnor believes Gor Mahia can overturn 2-0 deficit against Pyramids in Cairo“To be honest, we still have a long way to go before we can make a formidable statement and perform on the continental stage, especially when the draw does not favour us, like this time round.The moment I saw that we had been paired against Pyramids, I knew that was definitely the start and end of our journey in the competition. We had anticipated facing a team with a lesser profile in the first round and perhaps such a team in the second round.At the moment, Pyramids are better than us on almost all fronts, and I think we did our best. It is actually commendable that we managed to compete and lose by a respectable scoreline,” said Okumu.##NAJAVA_MECA_9936494##Sharon Hellen, meanwhile, opined that Pyramids reaped the benefits of conducting proper research on K'Ogalo.“I knew Pyramids would defeat us when their coach mentioned and described our players and their style of play so easily during his pre-match press conference.He mentioned our stars as if he was the head coach of Gor Mahia, and this showed just how prepared the team was and how seriously they took the assignment, even when they were facing what was, on paper, an inferior opponent.Gor Mahia wipe away CAF Champions League defeat to Egyptian giants with millions of shillingsWith proper preparation and the quality they possess, I believe they deserved to win the match,” she told Mozzart Sport.On Gor Mahia’s Facebook page, Ray Goldberg identified teamwork as one of the key weaknesses that worked to Pyramids’ advantage.“Good game, team. We missed teamwork. Ebenezer Assifuah, in the early stages of the game, was selfish, while Alpha Onyango held onto the ball for too long, with Assifuah and Dwang’ in space.##NAJAVA_MECA_9936487##Dwang’ was crossing the final ball, yearning for the final punch from someone inside the six-yard box, but there was none. Good game, though. We learnt that teamwork in continental fixtures is key,” he remarked.Fredrick Otieno, however, had a contrasting assessment of the game, pegging Gor Mahia’s defeat on head coach Charles Akonnor’s team selection.“This is a match I believe we could have easily won had Akonnor not fumbled with the squad. We all know how good Dwang’ is, and we saw the difference he brought to the match. Why did he start him on the bench against such a good side?Charlton coach blames Harambee Stars midfielder after costly error in 4-0 Stoke defeatI equally believe that we signed Paul Okoth for such assignments. We cannot sign a proven striker to bolster our attack and then keep benching him. He will soon lose his form and focus, and that will be solely the responsibility of the coach,” said Otieno.For Sasha Clara, the focus has already shifted to Gor Mahia’s domestic campaign.“When we were paired against Pyramids, I knew our journey had come to an end, and therefore I shifted my focus to Kenyan football.##NAJAVA_MECA_9936498##I was worried after our poor performances against Migori Youth and Tusker FC, but if the performance against the Egyptians is anything to go by, I believe we will still dominate the local scene, which is equally important.”