Tanzania: Simba Turn to Former Coach Kibadeni Ahead of Mazembe Clash

Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)

24 March 2011

Mainland champions Simba have drafted in former coach Abdallah Kibadeni in a bid to strengthen their technical bench towards their return leg of the African Champions League against holders, TP Mazembe.

Simba Chairman, Ismail Aden Rage told reporters on Thursday that they have also opted for the part time services of goalkeepers’ coach, Amour Awadh ahead of the crucial match at the National Stadium in Dar es Salaam next Saturday.

Rage said the decision to recruit Kibaden and Awadh sought to bolster the technical bench in the absence of head coach Patrick Phiri, who has gone to Zambia to attend his sick wife.

He said: “Phiri was supposed to be back today (yesterday) but he has asked to remain in Zambia for one more day, so he is expected back this Friday,” he said. Phiri did not return with Simba squad, which lost 3-1 away to Mazembe in first leg last Saturday, as he opted to head to his native, Zambia.

Rage said the club also wanted to summon up Twalib Hilal for the task but the move could not bear fruits since the former star, who is based in Oman, is currently attending a refresher course in Brazil.

Simba face an uphill task to reach the final qualifying round for the lucrative group phase of the African Champions League, as they need two unanswered goals against the Congolese giants to go through. Rage, though, oozed confidence they can topple TP Mazembe and progress to the next round.

He called for massive public support to cheer the team to victory. “Let us keep aside the Simba and Yanga politics and put at stake national interest,” appealed Rage who is also a legislator for Tabora Urban constituency.

The match will kick off at 3.00pm and will be charged by referees from Seychelles, whilst match commissioner will come from Kenya. Meanwhile, Rage said the club has requested the Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) to postpone their league match against Kagera Sugar, scheduled for next Monday.

The match was initially scheduled for Sunday but TFF announced on Tuesday that it has pushed it back to Monday. The decision to rearrange the match aimed at giving five Simba players, who also feature for the national soccer team, Taifa Stars, an opportunity to rejoin their club after the Stars’ 2012 AFCON qualifier against the Central African Republic (CAR) that will be played at the National Stadium on Saturday.

However, Rage argued that they need enough time to get their players fresh for the important league fixture, given they are fighting to retain their title. Simba have five players in the national team Taifa Stars, including goalkeeper Juma Kaseja, defenders Haruna Shamte and Juma Nyoso and strikers Mohamed Banka and Mbwana Samata.

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