- Amrouche has been suspended for eight matches by CAF
- Taifa Stars play Zambia
- DR Congo face Morocco in the other match
Tanzania take on Zambia in their second match at the Africa Cup of Nations, hoping their head coach Adel Amrouche’s suspension does not affect them. Amrouche was suspended by CAF for eight matches over comments he made before their first match against Morocco.
Suleiman Hemedi will be the man in charge when they take on Zambia, and he says the players have their focus sharp and looking forward to giving a good account of themselves and fighting for a first ever win at the AFCON.
He adds that he is ready to step into the feet of Amrouch, and is confident he can lead the team to glory.
“It’s a big responsibility for me to be here. But that’s normal too. The head coach could have had a red card so I have always had to be prepared for such situations.”
Meanwhile, the tactician says they have worked to resolve some of the weak points they picked out from their 3-0 defeat to Morocco and has promised they will come out stronger.
“After the match against Morocco, we prepared our team mentally and physically. We have also resolved our problems and we are ready to play Zambia. It’s a great team with good players but we have objectives for this tournament too,” the coach said.
Tanzania a tough team, says Zambia’s Grant
Zambia players during a training session. PHOTO/FAZ
Zambia coach Avram Grant has asked his players to be at their best and play cautiously as they take on Tanzania’s Taifa Stars in their second Group F match at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Grant hopes his side can pick their first win, having drawn with DR Congo in their opener, and he says they have picked up plenty of lessons to improve on.
“The most important thing in football is the next match. We started well against DR Congo but the focus now is Tanzania and we’re focusing on that. This meeting is important because we want to win to increase our chances of qualifying for the next round,” Grant said ahead of the game.
He added; “We have our own style of play. We want to move forward, and score goals every time. The Tanzania team is very solid. We will have to expect a complicated match.”
His sentiments are echoed by forward Fashion Sakala, who says the team needs to convert their chances early to take control of the game.
“We learned that with our first game that you have to take your chances. We had many but couldn’t convert and against Tanzania, we want to improve that,” Sakala said.
Morocco look to earn last 16 ticket early
Morocco’s head coach Walid regragui. PHOTO/CAF
Morocco’s Atlas Lions will qualify for the last 16 at the Africa Cup of Nations if they secure victory against DR Congo in their second match. The Atlas Lions, huge favourites for the title this year, started their campaign with a comfortable 3-0 win over Tanzania.
Head coach Walid Regragui says his team is ready and wants to make the last 16 but has cautioned it will not come easy.
“DR Congo is a very good team with lots of talent and players who work hard with quality. It will not be easy. For us, we want to remain humble and keep working hard. Our objective is to first make the round of 16 then we can continue from there,” said the coach.
He adds; “The focus is there with the players and everyone wants to give their best for the country.”
DR Congo started off their campaign with a 1-1 draw with Zambia and coach Sebastian Desabre wants his side to be more menacing infront of goal to get a positive result.
“Morocco is one of the best teams in the continent and we have to be really keen on how we approach them. We know how important a win will be for us and all the players are going in with the same mentality,” the coach said.
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