Tanzania’s local football team coach, Hamed Suleiman, has expressed confidence in his squad as they prepare to face Morocco in the quarter-finals of the African Nations Championship (CHAN 2024).
The match will take place on Friday at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam. Speaking to the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Suleiman commended the Moroccan team, saying they play with the same mentality as the senior national team. “For me, we are playing against Morocco’s first team, not just the local side,” he said.
Despite the challenge, the coach remains optimistic. “We respect them, but we’re not afraid. I know the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium will be full because the Tanzanian people now believe in their team,” the coach said.
This is a historic moment for Tanzania, as the team has reached the knockout stage of CHAN for the first time. Suleiman described it as a reward for his hard work and the determination of his players. “Nobody believed we would go this far.
I fought hard for these moments, I worked tirelessly, day and night. I’m the only one who believed in our ability to get out of the group stage,” the coach stated.
The highly anticipated match is scheduled to kick off at 6 p.m. local time.
Morocco, the two-time reigning CHAN champions (2018 and 2020), have shown their class in the group stage. They opened with an impressive 2-0 win over Angola, rebounded from a rare defeat to host Kenya, then claimed consecutive 3-1 victories, first against Zambia and then against DR Congo.
Their performance earned them second place in Group A with nine points, just behind Kenya, setting up a high-stakes quarter-final against Tanzania.