Taifa Stars eye improvement
CONGO: TAIFA Stars Head Coach Hemed Suleiman has admitted that his side still have room for improvement after a hard-fought 1-1 draw with Congo Brazzaville in their latest World Cup qualifying fixture, played on Friday night at Stade Alphonse Massemba-Débat.
The Tanzanian national team came into the tie hoping to collect all three points, but instead settled for a share of the spoils in a match that proved to be physically demanding and tactically tight.
“It was a tough game. Our goal was to earn maximum points, but we came away with one. The one point is still valuable and we are thankful we managed to get it,” said Suleiman after the final whistle.
Despite falling short of their aim, Suleiman remained optimistic about his team’s chances of qualifying, with two crucial home matches remaining against Niger and Zambia.
“We still have a chance to qualify through second place and go for the playoff. We still have a chance for World Cup qualification. That is where most of our effort are now focused,” he added.
Coach Suleiman said that the match was a tale of two halves. The first half saw Taifa Stars struggle to impose their usual rhythm as Congo Brazzaville pressed high and disrupted their attacking flow.
“Our opponents did their best to stop us. They were determined and did well to spoil our attempts. It wasn’t the way we had planned the game to go,” Suleiman explained. Congo Brazzaville capitalised on a lapse in concentration in the second half, finding the back of the net after the Tanzanian side momentarily lost focus.
“In the second half, my side lost focus and Congo created a chance which they took well,” said Suleiman.
However, the Taifa Stars showed resilience and responded with a number of tactical adjustments, which eventually led to the equaliser and helped steady the ship. “We made a few tactical changes and they paid off,” Suleiman noted.
“We saw better movement and discipline towards the end and I believe we can build on that going forward.”
With the draw, Tanzania remain in contention in their qualifying group, Tanzania now have 10 points with two matches remaining against Niger on Tuesday and Zambia in October. If they win both, they would finish with 16 points, which could secure qualification depending on other results. Morocco who is Group E leader yesterday secured qualification after a commanding 4–0 win over Niger at Stade Mohammed V in Casablanca, taking their tally to 18 points an unassailable lead in the group.
At third place are Zambia with six points from five games tied in points with Niger six points in five games they have played so far. CongoBrazzaville are now out of the race.
Only the winners of each group will qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup. The four best second-placed teams will enter a CAF playoff, with a chance to qualify through the inter-confederation playoffs.
