Pluijm predicts tough match against Yanga

Dar es Salaam. Singida United head coach Hans Van der Pluijm has admitted that their match against Yooung Africans will be tough.

The Singida-based moneybags will take on Yanga, as they are popularly known, tomorrow in the first quarterfinal match of the Azam Sports Federation Cup at the Namfua Stadium.

The Dutchman told The Citizen yesterday that they have prepared well for the challenge, admitting that they will not have a walk in the park come Sunday. “I know that it not going to be a walk in the park. We will be playing against a very good team, but we will fight to the very end and hopefully we will have the last laugh,” said the Dutchman, who once coached Yanga.

He added: “My players are motivated facing a team that is playing in the Caf Confederation Cup. Even so, truth be told, Yanga have a strong squad.”

The Jangwani Street giant have been camping in Morogoro since Monday in preparation of the match.

The winners of the Federation Cup will represent the Mainland at next year’s Caf Confederation Cup and this is the fourth time the two sides will be clashing.

In their previous meetings, Singida United tumbled to a 3-2 loss in a pre-season friendly before playing out a one-all draw at the Mapinduzi Cup earlier this year.

“I am confident that my players will draw inspiration from our past matches against Yanga. They played well against a better team and they could have walked away with a win had they kept composure in the box,” Pluijm said. However, he refused to take credit despite inspiring a huge turnaround in fortunes for the Singida-based side since taking charge of the outfit a year or so ago.

“You have to congratulate the players. They are the ones that are on the pitch,” he said.

“The fans too because they are always behind the team, they are always cheering, and everyone around the club.”

But he declined comment on the fate of Singida’s key player Danny Usengimana, who has reportedly gone ‘missing.’

“This is an administration issue,” he simply replied when pressed for comments on the matter.

Yanga will likely welcome back their Zimbabwean striker Donald Ngoma and Burundian Amissi Tambwe in today’s match.

Injury-plagued Ngoma has shrugged off a knee injury and trained with teammates at the Jamhuri Stadium in Morogoro yesterday.