The Citizen<\/a> (Dar\u00a0es\u00a0Salaam)<\/p>\nMajuto Omary<\/p>\n
2 December 2011<\/p>\n
\nKilimanjaro Stars today face a huge obstacle in their quest to reach the quarterfinals of the Cecafa Tusker Challenge Cup when they face Zimbabwe in a Group A match at the National Stadium.<\/p>\n
The match, which would kick off at 4pm, is expected to be full of sparks because both teams are confident of marching into the next stage.Both teams head into this match tied on three points from their two outings, though defending champions Kilimanjaro Stars boast a superior goal difference.<\/p>\n
Stars, who suffered a nightmarish start to the tournament following a 1-0 loss at the hands of Rwanda, need nothing less than victory, which would spur them in the quarterfinals.<\/p>\n
The head coach of the defending champions, Charles Boniface Mkwasa, yesterday declared his team ready to conquer the Warriors.”We are in a tricky situation, Zimbabwe are a formidable side, but we are well prepared for the challenge,” Mkwasa said.<\/p>\n
The former Taifa Stars midfielder added: “Our aim still remains to defend the title and we will not underrate any opponent, but we have to show it by conquering the Warriors today,”<\/p>\n
Stars have enough firepower upfront led by Mrisho Ngassa, Thomas Ulimwengu and Nurdin Bakari, but have to defend well for the Zimbabweans are renowned for devilish precision in front of the goal.<\/p>\n
The Warriors, who beat Djibouti 2-0 before losing by a similar score to Rwanda, will be relying on Donald Ngoma and Qadr Amini to do the damage.The duo were on target against Djibouti and the Warriors’ head coach will be hoping them to be in perfect forms today.<\/p>\n
For his part, Kilimanjaro Stars skipper Juma Kaseja assured Tanzanians of recording a victory over Zimbabwe and called upon them to turn up in big numbers to cheer them.In an early fixture, Kenya will square off with Sudan in a decisive Group C match. The winning team will qualify for the quarterfinals.<\/p>\n
AllAfrica – All the Time<\/p>\n
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