Africa-Press – Tanzania. SWORDS have been sharpened ready to be used as Young Africans face Biashara United in the first semifinals match of the Azam Sports Federation Cup (ASFC) at Ali Hassan Mwinyi Stadium in Tabora today.
The winner automatically earns a ticket to step into the final and will play either Simba or Azam who are expected to square off in another last four meeting at Majimaji Stadium in Songea, Ruvuma tomorrow.
It has been a long journey for the qualified teams to reach this far with each looking forward to clinch the prestigious title and be able to represent the country in CAF Confederation Cup.
This will be the third time for the two teams to meet in competitive contests after playing twice in the Mainland Premier League where in both instances, Yanga collected maximum six points.
The Jangwani Street based club stamped 1-0 win in the past two duels with Yacouba Sogne scoring the only goal when they met at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam, while at Karume Stadium in Musoma, Micheal Saprong netted the solitary goal.
This means it remains a monumental task for the Musoma based lads to stop Yanga and see themselves marching into the final for the first time in the club’s history.
In terms of quality, Biashara United have what it takes to reach far in the competition and basing on their current fourth slot on the top flight league table, they are not in Tabora by chance but rather, worked hard for it.
Likewise, Yanga see this as the best opportunity to fulfill their target of bagging the ASFC trophy, hence they will come out full throttle to produce something tangible to win the match.
According to the club’s Information Officer Hassan Bumbuli, Yanga will miss the services of Micheal Saprong, Lamine Moro, Metacha Mnata, Yassin Mustapha, Abdallah Shaibu and Mapinduzi Balama.
He however narrated that all other players in the squad are fit to fight for the team to do well and progress into the final of the competition.
Yanga arrived in Tabora on Wednesday afternoon where they got massive welcome from their fans, who thronged at the airport eager to see their team.
Meanwhile, Azam said striker Prince Dube will be in action against Simba in the Azam Sports Federation Cup (ASFC) semifinals match at Majimaji Stadium in Songea, Ruvuma on tomorrow.
The two teams will battle in a heavy weight clash eyeing for one slot in the ASFC final, whose ultimate winner earns a privilege to represent the country in CAF Confederation Cup.
Azam’s Assistant Coach Vivier Bahati said Dube was rested during the Mainland Premier League match against Namungo FC at the Kassim Majaliwa Stadium in Mtwara last Monday, to recuperate and also to give chance to other players to feature in the game. He also missed out in their games against Gwambina, which Azam won 4-1 at the Azam Complex in Chamazi, Dar es Salaam.
“We decided to rest him (Dube) to give other strikers in the team a chance to showcase what they are capable to do and I believe that on Saturday, all of them will be ready to play,” he said.
He added that he is aware how difficult the semifinals duel with Simba will be but he insisted on undergoing ample preparations in order to get meaningful results.
