Tanzania will kick off their campaign to reach the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Ivory Coast with an away fixture against Niger at Stade de l’Amitie in Cotonou on Saturday.
The Taifa Stars, who are pooled in Group F alongside Le Mena The Mena, Uganda, and Algeria, will hope to make a return to the Afcon finals having missed out on the last edition held in Cameroon.
The last time the East African nation took part in the finals was in 2019 in Egypt when they failed to get past the group stage. They lost all their group matches against Kenya, Algeria, and Senegal.
| Game | Niger vs Tanzania |
| Date | Saturday, June 04, 2022 |
| Time | 19:00 EAT |
TV Channel, Live Score & How To Watch
| Online Streaming | TV Channel |
|---|---|
| TFF Facebook page | Azam TV |
Squads & Team News
Niger coach Jean-Michel Cavalli will have his full squad for the group opener. It is the same case for Tanzania coach Kim Poulsen, whose worries were eased on Thursday following the arrival of forward Simon Msuva, who turns out for Wydad Casablanca in Morocco.
GettyMsuva was the only player yet to report to camp. Mbwana Samatta, who turns out for Royal Antwerp in Belgium will captain the side, while other foreign-based players include Ben Starkie of Spalding in England, Himid Mao of Ghazi El-Mahalla in Egypt, Novatus Dismas of Beltar Tell Aviv in Israel and Kelvin John of KRC Genk in Belgium.
Poulsen is confident Tanzania will return home with a positive result.
“My players look good, they are ready and we don’t have any injuries,” the 63-year-old Danish coach told GOAL. “I am happy Simon [Msuva] joined us, so we have a full squad to pick our starting XI, we are ready and all we want is a positive start.”
Match Preview
Niger has participated in two Afcons - the 2012 and 2013 editions. Le Mena The Mena produced a stunning qualifying run in 2012 qualification campaign after they overcame giants like Egypt and South Africa to book a finals debut, where they lost all three matches.
In their last four matches, they have managed one win, two draws, and one defeat. They secured a 1-1 draw against Burkina Faso in a World Cup qualifier, defeated Djibouti 7-2 in another qualifier, drew 1-1 against Mozambique, and lost 2-1 against Libya in build-up matches.
Meanwhile, Tanzania have only played in two Afcons, in 1980 and 2019. The national team’s records in the tournament is also not impressive, with five defeats and one draw dated from their 1980 debut edition, a 1-1 outcome against Ivory Coast.
In their last four matches, Tanzania have registered one win, two draws, and one defeat. They drew 1-1 against Madagascar in a World Cup qualifier, lost 2-0 against the Cranes in a friendly, beat the Central African Republic 3-1, and drew 1-1 against Sudan in friendlies.
After facing Niger, Tanzania will return home to host the Desert Warriors on matchday two at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium on June 8.