Ibengé: Azam learn hard lesson against Polisi TZ draw

ARUSHA: AZAM FC learned a hard lesson against promoted Polisi Tanzania after being held to a 1–1 draw in their Mainland Premier League match at Sheikh Amri Abeid Memorial Stadium in Arusha on Saturday, according to head coach Florent Ibengé.

Ibengé said Azam knew what to expect from Polisi, including their direct style and strong motivation, but his players failed to match their opponents’ intensity.

The draw denied Azam a win against the promoted side. “We were not ready to face this team. We knew that this team plays direct and that they were going to be really motivated, but we were not there today,” Ibengé said.

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He said Azam were slow and did not show the right mentality, adding that they failed to respect the demands of the game.

“You have to respect football, you have to play a full game, and today we didn’t play a full game,” he said. Ibengé said he was disappointed with the performance but believed the result had given his team important lessons to address. “We have a lot of lessons to take from this game, so we are going to improve all that for the next game,” he said.