CECAFA U-20 FINAL: Campesino warns on Sudan test

DAR ES SALAAM: TANZANIA U-20 head coach Mario Campesino has hailed his side’s 2-0 victory over Burundi but warned that they face a tough test against Sudan in today’s CECAFA U-20 Championship final at Uhuru Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

Ngorongoro Heroes secured their place in the 2027 CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) with the semi-final victory yesterday, with Juma Abushiri and Faraji Kayanda scoring in the first half to put the hosts in control.

With qualification for the 2027 AFCON already secured, Tanzania will now focus on finishing the tournament on a high note against Sudan.

Campesino expects the final to be a difficult encounter, describing Sudan as a strong and complete side with the ability to defend, attack and threaten on the counter.

“They are a strong team. They can play, they can defend, they can run and they have the counter-attack. They are a very complete team and we have to give our best performance to try to win,” he said.

Regarding Tuesday’s encounter against Burundi, Campesino said his players executed their game plan well, particularly in the opening 45 minutes, when Tanzania created several chances and could have put the match beyond Burundi’s reach.

“We knew how they wanted to play against us and we followed the plan. The first half was almost perfect. To be perfect, we needed to score the third goal because we had many chances. If we had scored it, we would have killed the match,” Campesino said.

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Tanzania could not add to their tally after the break, with the team instead concentrating on defending their advantage and looking for opportunities to attack. Campesino acknowledged that his side still created chances but failed to find the third goal.

Despite the change in approach, he was impressed by the team’s defensive discipline, noting that Tanzania have maintained a perfect defensive record throughout the tournament.

“In the second half, we came to wait, defend and try to get some opportunities. We had chances also, but we couldn’t score the third one. But the performance was amazing,” he said.

Tanzania have now played two group-stage matches and the semi-final without conceding, something Campesino believes reflects the players’ attitude, discipline and commitment to the team’s plan.

“We have played two matches in the group stage and the semi-final and still have a clean sheet. I think that says a lot about the attitude and performance of the players, their discipline and many things about my players,” he said.