USM Alger of Algeria surged into the CAF Confederation Cup group phase for the first time by trouncing Plateau United of Nigeria 4-0 Tuesday in a play-off second leg.
The Algiers club advanced 5-2 on aggregate to the 16-club mini-league stage after losing the first leg 2-1 in Lagos 10 days ago.
Oussama Darfalou put USM ahead on 28 minutes in the Algerian capital and scored again three minutes after half-time to give the 2015 CAF Champions League runners-up a 3-0 lead.
Kaddour Beldjilali after 43 minutes and Mohamed Benkhemassa nine minutes from time were the other USM scorers.
CR Belouizdad, the other Algerian challengers in the second-tier African club competition, were held 0-0 at home by ASEC Mimosas of the Ivory Coast and bowed out having lost 1-0 away.
The result confirmed the good away record of Abidjan-based former African champions ASEC in CAF competitions this season.
They drew in Benin and won in Zambia in the Champions League before being relegated to the Confederation Cup after a shock home defeat.
ASEC won the Champions League in 1998 and lifted CAF Super Cup the following year, but have made little impact in African competitions since.
V Club of the Democratic Republic of Congo spectacularly clinched a group place for the first time since 2009 by overwhelming La Mancha of Congo Brazzaville 5-1 in Pointe-Noire.
The result was unexpected as 1973 African champions V Club needed a late goal to snatch a 1-0 first-leg victory in Kinshasa.
Jean-Marc Makusu Mundele gave V Club an early lead in the Atlantic port city and Guy Mbenza levelled before half-time to offer Mancha a glimmer of hope.
But after Mundele struck again on the hour, his club finished the match strongly with three goals in six minutes.
Al Masry of Egypt secured a group place for the first time after edging CF Mounana of Gabon 2-1 in Port Said after the first leg ended 1-1 in central Africa.
Mohamed Koffi, one of two Burkina Faso internationals in the Masry line-up, nodded the home side ahead on 59 minutes.
Louis Autchanga equalised on the night and on aggregate soon after only for team-mate Dieudonne Nkoume to concede an own-goal 15 minutes from time.
A further 12 second legs are scheduled for Wednesday, including 2017 runners-up SuperSport United of South Africa hosting Gor Mahia of Kenya and hoping to overcome a 1-0 deficit.
AFP.