Afcon: Tanzania coach Emmanuel Amuneke has made Nigeria proud - Henry Nwosu

Former Nigeria international Henry Nwosu has lauded the performance of his countryman, Tanzania coach Emmanuel Amuneke.

Amuneke took charge of the Taifa Stars in August 2018, having earlier led the Nigeria U17 to the 2015 World Cup title in Chile, and managed Sudanese club Al Khartoum.

The former Barcelona forward hit the ground running and turned around the fortune of the East Africans, who started the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers on a shaky note with a 1-1 draw against Lesotho.

The Nigerian tactician marshalled his side to their first Afcon finals in 39 years after defeating Uganda 3-0 in their last qualifying game to pick the second ticket in Group L.

Nwosu is impressed with the performance of his countryman and has backed him to coach the Super Eagles in future.

“He deserved praises because he has done a very good job with Tanzania. He qualified them for Africa Nations Cup for the first time in many years,” Nwosu told Goal.

“He has made Nigerians proud. He has put our name in the good record. We should all continue to encourage and support him for what he has done with Tanzania. He is building his own name.

“He is doing well with his present team so I will not be surprised if he gets the Super Eagles job in future. By God’s grace, I hope it will happen and I am happy for him.”

In Egypt, Tanzania have been drawn along with West African giants Senegal, Algeria and Kenya in Group C.

Nwosu former Nigeria U17 coach believes the Taifa Stars can impress in the Afcon tournament.

“Although it is too early to predict if they will come out from the group but I am sure they can spring up surprises in the tournament. They are young boys and talented,” he continued.

“My advice for Amuneke is to prepare the team well for the competition and ensure that they are psychologically ready and that they don’t lack anything because that is very important.”

The East Africans will open their campaign in the biennial tournament -which will start on Friday – against the Terenga Lions at the 30 June Stadium on Sunday.