Africa-Press – Tanzania. YOUNG Africans and Azam will be busy searching for vital three points to cement their current second and third slots of the Mainland Premier League table, as the season nears its climax.
With the Mainland Premier League raging on, the battle for the top three is likely to heat up this weekend with second and third placed Young Africans and Azam FC all in action.
Simba, Yanga and Azam respectively are engaged in a tight race, seeking to join continental’s elite competition next season.
Today, Yanga will be away at Kassim Majaliwa Stadium in Ruangwa, Lindi facing Namungo in a tricky weekend top flight league fixture.
On the other hand, Azam will be at their home turf entertaining KMC in another eye catching match expected to attract attention from many football fans across the country.
Yanga are second on 57 points from 27 outings, while Azam are on 54 points from 28 matches. This means, Yanga have seven matches to go, while Azam have remained with six matches.
Defending champions and league leaders — Simba will be on the sidelines as they are in Johannesburg, South Africa ahead of their first leg of CAF Champions League quarter final match against hosts, Kaizer Chiefs at FNB Stadium today.
Simba are four points clear of second placed Yanga and with nine matches for them to go, the Reds are clear favourites and are on track to retain the title the fourth consecutive time.
For Yanga, they badly need to collect all three points in order to stay put on the course of challenging for the silverware at the end of the season and in case of negative results, then slowly, they will be surrendering the race for championship.
However, it will certainly be a tough call for the Jangwani Street outfit away to 10th placed Namungo. The Ruangwa lads are seeking to crawl up the ladder.
And, Yanga Head Coach, Tunisian Nassredine Nabi said that his squad is ready to hunt for maximum points, which will boost their title race campaign.
However, they need to be on their guard as Namungo are not an easy push especially when they play at their home turf. Looking at the standings, Namungo are not safe from the relegation zone.
They are still very much embroiled in the red tape, meaning the Ruangwa lads will also desperately demand to snatch maximum three points to be comfortable on the log.
They go into the game with heads up after winning their previous match 1-0 against Kagera Sugar at the same venue which helped the team to climb to 10th place on the ladder with 35 points in their bag.
At Azam Complex, the artificial turf will suffer as each team look sharp to grab the crucial triumph despite the fact that they are both assured to resurface in the marathon next season.
KMC sit on 5th place after gathering 41 points. Azam might probably not win the league title but have remained firm on the hunt for the golden boot chase in the name of striker Prince Dube whose scoring boots are no longer going hungry.
He however ought to continue be aggressive at the goal mouth should he really want to end the season with the best award each player in any competitive league would like to have.
