Tanzania are keen to learn from other countries at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, according to coach Emmanuel Amuneke.
The 1994 African Player of the Year qualified the East African nation for the biennial football championship after 39 years.
The Taifa Stars must navigate their way past Senegal, Kenya and Algeria in Egypt.
“There is no benchmark but the reality is that when you are a coach, you want to succeed, and it takes a whole lot of process, commitment and controlling your emotions,” Amuneke told Goal.
“Nobody expected Tanzania [to qualify for the 2019 Afcon] but football is changing. You can see teams like Madagascar and Kenya among the 24 teams –that shows countries are doing a lot to improve their football and I hope it will continue to develop in the nearest future.
“I don’t give myself a benchmark but I know myself, when the time comes, we’ll approach [this] from a holistic point of view.
“39 years is not a day, Nations Cups have come and gone, many players have played in Afcon, so we’re going there to improve ourselves, make sure we get some knowledge from the big boys and hopefully give a good account of ourselves.”
Still basking in the euphoria of leading the team to their first Afcon since Nigeria 1980, the 48-year-old is not coy on the challenges ahead.
“Nothing is easy in life, every journey and everything you are doing has its own challenges,” he continued.
“Coaching is not just bringing players together, it takes a whole lot of things to see how you can achieve results.
“We are happy for the people of Tanzania, we are happy with ourselves – we’re still young, we’re growing, we’re open to learn and this journey will continue to guide us to learn.”
Tanzania begin their Afcon 2019 expedition against Senegal on June 23 in Cairo.
