Tanzania/Mozambique: Stars Out to Tame Black Mambas

The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)

Majuto Omary

23 April 2011

Taifa Stars take to the field against Mambas of Mozambique this evening in what promises to be a tantalising friendly at the new 42,000-seater facility, Zimpeto National Stadium.

Oozing with confidence, the national team arrived safely in Maputo yesterday, looking forward to building on their winning momentum.

Stars beat lowly Palestine 1-0 in a strength-testing encounter in February before fighting back to down the Central African Republic (CAR) 2-1 in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier last month.

Speaking during a brief farewell ceremony on Friday, head coach Jan Poulsen said they were prepared for the challenge.

“Players have been responding well and I’m impressed by their attitude. This is a big game and we’ve to seize this chance to sharpen the team ahead of the remaining AFCON qualifiers,” the Dane said.

The Poulsen men face a bumpy road to the 2012 AFCON finals, as they have to muster at least six points from their matches against CAR, Algeria and Morocco.

“We’ve to play away to CAR in six weeks, so this match would give us the match practice that we need…my players are ready for the battles,” he added.

The Mambas, placed 96th in the Fifa world ranking, are pre-match favourites given the anticipated electrifying home atmosphere, but the Stars (112) have the depth and quality to pull a surprise.

Skipper Shadrack Nsajigwa also harboured hopes of taming the Mambas on their home soil.

“All we need is to carry on the momentum of our last game,” Nsajigwa said, adding: “The victory in the last game boosted the morale of players and the players are confident of beating Mozambique.

“We also hope to go all out to win the remaining matches in the AFCON campaign,” the ageless captain said.

Mbwana Samatta and John Bocco are expected to lead the striking force today. The duo illuminated the premiership this season with their blinding pace, bags of skills and goals.

When the two sides met in 2007 in the AFCON qualifying, the Mambas beat Stars 1-0 in Dar es Salaam.

AllAfrica – All the Time