Author: BENJAMIN BEN
AfricaPress-Tanzania: YOUNG Africans Head Coach Zlatko Krmpotic said he was impressed with the patience and fighting spirit of his side and not the way they played on Sunday.
Yanga late 1-0 victory against well- organised Mbeya City at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam courtesy of a piercing header by defender Lamine Moro in the 86th minute.
Substitute Carlinhos provided the timely assist via a corner kick which was wisely utilised by Moro as time was fast elapsing heading to what seemed to be another draw for the hosts.
“Let me congratulate my team for the way they fight and not the way they played. To score a goal like that in the closing stages of the match needs patience and that is exactly what they did,” said Krmpotic during the post-match briefing.
He added that at the moment, everyone in his squad is working hard to prove his best but also, the coach was quick to give kudos to Mbeya City saying they are not a bad team.
“We faced a side which is tactically good but winning in the end was what we highly deserved as we continue to build a strong side since almost 17 players are new and have not yet understood with each other,” he said.
On his part, Mbeya City coach Amri Said hailed his players for maintaining discipline throughout the tense match saying his game plan worked well even though they were not luck to win.
“To be honest, my players had a good match as they followed well the game plan we created prior to the match only that in the final stages, my defenders lost concentration hence conceding the goal,” he said.
Moreover, the coach lamented that until now, he is not aware what happened to his team to accept the heavy 4-0 defeat from KMC in their inaugural match of the season.
“My team is not bad as many people think such that up to now, I hardly know what really happened to lose like that. I believe that my team will be much better in the upcoming games,” said him.
He continued: “What I need now in my team is to win such that if we will do better in two or three consecutive games, we will get back on the right track. I have a belief that before the first round expires, everything will be fine and we will collect points from home and away venues.”
Up next, Yanga will have two back to back tricky away fixtures against Kagera Sugar on Saturday at Kaitaba Stadium before facing Mtibwa Sugar a week later at Jamhuri Stadium in Morogoro.
On the other hand, Mbeya City after opening the league doors away will be at home taking on Azam FC at Sokoine Stadium in Mbeya before entertaining Namungo FC the following week.
