Africa-Press – Tanzania. SIMBA have rebuffed claims that playmaker Louis Miquissone is set to join their traditional rivals Young Africans next season saying he still has a contract to honour at the club.
Lately, social media platforms have been awash with information that Miquissone will be heading to Yanga as the latter have finalised the deal.
But, at press briefing yesterday in the city, the club’s Information Officer Haji Manara reiterated that Miquissone is still having a contract with Simba as such people should not be misled by such false information.
He added that for any domestic club which needs to hire Miquissone’s services should be ready to pay 10m dollars while urging people to stop disseminating unfounded information.
Concerning the upcoming traditional derby match against Yanga at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam on Saturday, Manara said they are ready for the battle to claim three points.
“We rarely meet versus Yanga in decisive matches whereby if one wins, will be declared champions as such, we will take the match seriously knowing in advance that the fourth straight league title is already in our hands
“We respect Yanga as our traditional rivals and we have no guarantee from God to win the game but basing on the quality of players we have in the results oriented team, I believe we will win,” he said.
Meanwhile, both Simba and Yanga have announced recovery of some of players who are set to boost their respective squads prior to the explosive derby encounter.
The defending champions have declared striker Chris Mugalu fit to be featured on the day after he missed a couple of recent competitive games for his side due to injury.
This will give Head Coach Didier Gomes a wide selection option for his striking department knowing in advance that they face a must win encounter to be announced champions early before the season elapses.
The Frenchman trainer is seeking to register his first domestic silverware at the helm of the club and winning the Mainland Premier League title has always been his primary priority.
With John Bocco and Meddie Kagere still in the hunt of the season’s golden boot award, Simba continue to remain lethal upfront such that they are assured to score at any moment in the game.
On the other hand, Yanga announced the return of two defenders Abdalla Shaibu ‘Ninja’ and Yassin Mustapha, who were also sidelined in many matches due to injury.
Their return to action will also help coach Nasreddine Nabi to cement his backline in order to contain well Simba venom attackers who can cause damage at the blink of an eye.
However, Ninja’s return means he will be in a good position to cover the void left by skipper and center-back Lamine Moro who has missed six straight Yanga games.
His last game this season in Yanga colours was an away duel versus Tanzania Prisons on April 30th at Nelson Mandela Stadium in Sumbawanga, Rukwa and since then, the club has been mum on his progress.
With the current defensive partnership between Bakari Mwamnyeto and Dickson Job looking workable, Nabi still needs a defender of Ninja caliber who is good in aerial combat and has the required physique to produce remarkable performance.
