Tanzania: Goal-Shy Kili Stars Seek Redemption in Cecafa

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    The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)

    Majuto Omary

    28 November 2011


    Dar es Salaam — Kilimanjaro Stars have a better chance to bounce back into contention for a place in the quarter finals of the 2011 Cecafa Tusker Challenge Cup when they face lowly Djibouti this afternoon.

    Djibouti go into today’s Group A clash at the National Stadium on the back of a 2-0 thrashing by Zimbabwe Warriors in their opening tie, and will want to have a go at Boniface Mkwasa’s team. Defending champions Kilimanjaro Stars, who lost 1-0 to Rwanda’s Amavubi Stars in their opening tie on Saturday, need nothing short of a victory to revive their hopes for the next stage of the regional tournament.

    The hosts, one of the pre-tournament favourites, were far from impressive. Even the presence of Prime Minisiter Mizengo Pinda could not inspire them to a win.

    The match could, perhaps, have ended in a draw had it not been forpoor finishing by the hosts’ strikers.

    Kilimanjaro Stars head coach Mkwasa admitted yesterday that he was not happy with the way his team played, but said he expected an improvement in today’s game.

    “Djibouti are certainly beatable, but we’ll never under-estimate them because a defeat or draw will put our qualification in jeopardy,” said Mkwasa.

    He said he and his assistant Jamhuri Kihwelu have addressed the weaknesses they noted during Friday’s match against the Rwanda team. But Mkwasa’s lads should not expect a win on silver platter as Djibouti are also in dire need of the three points at stake today.

    Despite going down 2-0 to Zimbabwe, Djibouti are not pushovers, and if words by team skipper Abdallah Mohammed are anything to go by, the hosts should expect a stiffer resistance from the Djibouti side.

    “We’re well prepared for tomorrow’s match against Kilimanjaro Stars, I am optimistic we’ll cause an upset by silencing them before their home fans,” said Mohammed.

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