YOUNG Africans Assistant Coach Cedric Kaze conceded that his side under-performed despite a win while Geita Gold trainer Felix Minziro said the red card affected his game plan.
Yanga cruised into the semifinals of Azam Sports Federation Cup (ASFC) following their 1-0 victory over Geita Gold at Azam Complex in Dar es Salaam over the weekend. Substitute Fiston Mayele netted the solitary goal on the day which was enough to take them to the last four stage of the contest and will face Singida Big Stars at Liti Stadium in Singida.
The other semifinal game will pit Simba against Azam in a duel to be staged at Mkwakwani Stadium in Tanga, also the venue of the final match.
“We started the game well by pressing hard and creating opportunities but later, we relaxed thereby giving them (Geita Gold) a chance to regroup and a feeling that they can easily dominate us.
“In the second half, we made a couple of substitutions plus changing the playing format leading us to source the winning goal but overall, I am not impressed with today’s performance,” Kaze said.
He added: “We had a chance to do much better and we lost many passes in their final third which were easily intercepted.
“The most important thing is that we have qualified to the next phase of the competition and we are going to work hard to sort out the shortfalls which have transpired,” he insisted.
However, it was Kaze’s second match in a row to be in full charge of the team as Head Coach Nasreddine Nabi is reportedly to be outside the country.
Minziro, for Geita Gold hailed his charges for the good job well done saying they put it all on the day though the outcome was not what they were looking for.
“I said before the game that we were playing against a great team with quality players and are doing well in both domestic and international matches but we managed to showcase a competitive match.
“I think the red card put us out of the contest because obviously, our energy declined of which our opponents seized it as an advantage to dominate the play,” said Minziro
