NATIONAL Under-23 football team Head Coach Hemed Morocco said he is confident that his charges will produce an away win to sail through to the second round of Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
The country’s side launched their qualifiers on a backpedal after being held to a barren draw by South Sudan at Azam Complex in Dar es Salaam on Friday.
The two teams face again in Kigali, Rwanda their return leg tomorrow and the winner will march on to the next phase of the competition.
South Sudan have opted to use Rwanda as their home venue for the second leg since their country lacks a good venue for CAF- governed tournaments.
“I am thankful to God that the game has ended well but the outcome is not good enough to us…it is an advantage for South Sudan.
“We played with a lot of pressure, we did not have a good first half as we lost many passes. In the second half, we tried to get back into the game by creating several scoring opportunities of which we failed to materialise,” Morocco said.
He added that one of the areas he wants to improve before the next game is the defence but he remains confident that in the return leg, his charges will stamp success.
“Every player will play his part in order to enable Tanzania step into the next stage of the competition. We are aware that the second leg will not be easy but in football, anything can happen,” he said.
His counterpart for South Sudan Simon James admitted that he was disappointed with the outcome saying in qualifiers, winning matches is the most important thing.
Adding, he said during the match, he was forced to change the system of play after analysing well Tanzania while conceding that he is happy with the draw and is looking forward to the next fixture.
The Under-23 AFCON finals will be staged in Morocco and Egypt are the current champions who will be fighting to defend the silverware for the second time in a row.
