Dismay as Manji quits Yanga

Young Africans chairman Yusuf Manji stresses a point during a past press conference in Dar es Salaam. PHOTO | FILE

What you need to know:

  • “I would like to thank Yanga members for giving me the opportunity to head the club, and fans for always being so passionately supportive of their team,” he said in a statement.
  • Manji tendered his resignation letter to club’s vice chairman, Clement Sanga yesterday.

Dar es Salaam. Yusuf Manji’s 11 years as Young Africans chairman came to an abrupt end yesterday when called it quits.

“I would like to thank Yanga members for giving me the opportunity to head the club, and fans for always being so passionately supportive of their team,” he said in a statement.

Manji tendered his resignation letter to club’s vice chairman, Clement Sanga yesterday.

Meanwhile, the national Under-17 soccer team, Serengeti Boys, are expected to return home today from Gabon, where they competed in the 2017 Africa Youth Cup of Nations finals.

Their fairytale run in the tournament came to an end on Sunday night after they went down 1-0 to Le Mena Cadets of Niger in their final Group B match at the Stade de Port Gentil, Libreville.

After a two-day break, action resumes today with the semi-final matches taking place simultaneously in Libreville and Port Gentil in what promise to be interesting fixtures amongst the four gladiators from the West African sub-region.

The seemingly familiarities amongst the four notwithstanding, fans should expect a bruising clash when title holders Mali confront Guinea at the Stade de l’Amitie in Libreville in a repeat of a semi-final encounter between both sides two years ago in Niamey.

In the other all West-African tie at Stade de Port Gentil, two-time champions, Black Starlets of Ghana would face stiff challenge from Le Mena Cadets of Niger in a tricky tie following results between both sides in friendlies ahead of Gabon 2017. “We respect our opponents. (Niger); but our chance of progressing to the final is very bright,” Samuel Fabian, the 58-year-old experienced Ghana U-17 trainer told CAFOnline.com

“In fact, we are happy they’ve qualified together with us because we played two friendlies with them as part of our preparations for this competition but a semi-final match is not the same as a friendly so we would leave no stone unturned,” he added.

The Black Starlets have scored more goals than any other team without conceding any at this tournament; yet coach Ismaila Tiemoko of Niger said he was not worried about the Ghanaian impressive statistics.

“We have made history already with qualification for the World Cup for the first time on Sunday but we are not yet satisfied; we want to go all the way and win the trophy for the first time,” stated the 52-year-old Tiemoko.

“Though we lost two friendly matches against Ghana before arriving here, we are on the same level now with Ghana because we have both qualified for the semi-finals, and we are not going to play them with fear or respect.”

In Libreville, Le Syli Cadets want to break their duck against Les Aiglonnets who dispatched them 2-1 the last time in Niamey and not forgetting that 4-3 aggregate loss that denied them qualification.