Yanga SC players celebrate after scoring during a past Vodacom Premier League match at the National Stadium. photo | file
What you need to know:
The match to be held at Manungu Stadium in Morogoro is one of two encounters that are on the menu at different venues as the battle for the title takes shape.
Dar es Salaam. Six days after elimination from the African Champions League at the hands of Al-Ahly of Egypt, Young Africans will look to re-launch their Vodacom Premier League title challenge when they take on Mtibwa Sugar today.
The match to be held at Manungu Stadium in Morogoro is one of two encounters that are on the menu at different venues as the battle for the title takes shape.
Elsewhere, leaders Azam FC, smarting from a hard-fought 2-2 draw against red-hot Tanzania Prisons, face yet another tricky assignment when they host stubborn Coastal Union of Tanga at Azam Complex in the suburbs of the city.
Prior to the draw, the Chamazi moneybags were bundled out of the CAF Confederation Cup by Mozambique’s Ferroviario de Beira on 2-1 aggregate. This means both Azam and Yanga seek victories not only to appease their disgruntled fans but also stake a claim as serious contenders for the crown and the jackpot that goes with it.
While Azam need the victory to remain unruffled at the summit of the league table, third-placed Yanga seek the three points at stake today to reclaim the league reigns.
Azam top the 14-team league table with 40 points from 18 outings, two ahead of Yanga and one ahead of second-placed Mbeya City, who are not in action this afternoon.
Yanga, who have a match in hand over Azam, will be buoyed by having beaten Al-Ahly in the African Champions League for the first time in history and head coach Hans Van Pluijm says that the Mainland champions are supremely motivated to topple Azam and Mbeya City.
“We don’t have a choice. Now our target is to win the league,” Pluijm said yesterday, nearly a week after a defeat to Al-Ahly 4-3 on penalties in the return leg in Alexandria extinguished their hopes of making it into the last 16.
“I think we showed we have the quality to be up there with the best teams in Africa. It is a good thing for us. It is important now to finish the season well and retain the league title,” he added. However, the Jangwani Street lads need not only a win to leapfrog Azam but also pray that Coastal Union upset the ice-cream makers.
Coastal Union sit seventh in the league standing, and a win could see them move two steps up the ladder. Mtibwa Sugar head coach Mecky Mexime, on the other hand, predicted a tough match, but remains optimistic that his team will silence the Mainland champions.
