Author: BENJAMIN BEN
AfricaPress-Tanzania: THE Tanzania Premier League Board (TPLB) has urged teams which will compete in all football leagues next season to use this transfer period wisely by repairing their squads.
According to TPLB, the new season will kick off on September 6th this year and will be preceded by the Community Shield match between reigning champions Simba SC and Namungo FC on August 29th at Sheikh Amri Abeid Kaluta Stadium in Arusha.
The game will be a repeat of the last season’s Azam Sports Federation Cup (ASFC) final in which, Simba won 2-1 to accomplish their mission of claiming treble titles.
Speaking yesterday in Dar es Salaam, TPLB Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Almas Kasongo reiterated that this is the best opportunity for teams to strengthen their respective squads before next season.
“I believe that if teams will make good signings, we will be able to witness real competitions from all the contesting sides in the league.
“Our objective is to see balance of competition when the league unfolds as it helps a lot to avoid seeing a team being declared champions with at least six or more games to play,” he said.
Moreover, Kasongo pointed out that signing new players alone is not a guarantee to have an impact in the league but also, teams should undergo ample time of preparations.
In a related development, Kasongo cemented that the issue of club licensing will highly be enforced next season hence clubs should be fully aware about that.
“As a TPLB boss, I really would like to work with clubs which are complete in terms of having all requirements needed in club licensing. For example, clubs should have a person who overlooks its daily activities like a CEO or a general secretary or a general manager whatever they will prefer to call him or her.
“Also, we expect clubs to hire people who are expert in their fields of specialisation like finance, Information Officers and legal experts. That is what club licensing demands,” he said.
“Surely, if every club will meet the needs of club licensing mainly by having a full secretariat, it will highly simplify our works since we will be dealing with people who know their responsibilities,” he added.
He also maintained TPLB position that those clubs which will have not acquired the basic requirements of club licensing; they will not be awarded certificates to operate in the country’s football leagues.
