David meets Goliath: Minnows Somalia face favourites Zambia today

By GILBERT WANDERA

Ethiopia’s Getaneh Kebede (left) and Zambia’s Chisamba Lungu clash during their African Nations Cup (AFCON 2013) Group C  match in Nelspruit, in January. [PHOTO:REUTERS]

Council for East and Central Football Association (Cecafa) action moves to Machakos today where favourites Zambia take on Tanzania while Burundi tackle Somalia.

The first match will be between Burundi and Somalia coach Mohammed Abdulle says his focus remains to get his team to the next round of the competition.

Abdulle said he is determined to overturn the 5-0 loss his side suffered against Burundi in last year’s tournament held in Uganda.

“We are proud of our achievement of not having  missed any competition despite the many challenges we face at home.

“We understand that as a country, results are measured at two levels — in terms of participation and results on the pitch. We have not done well in the latter but want to make a difference this year.

“Burundi is a formidable side that hammered us last year, but that is in the past. We have had some good training in the last two months and I believe it will show in our results today,” he said.

The coach said his young players are ready to start doing well in the competition. He believes this year’s event will be a big turn around for the war torn country.

inspire team

Burundi national team captain Hassan Akizimana believes a good performance in this year’s event will go along way in inspiring the team to do well in the 2014 Africa Nations Championships (CHAN) in South Africa.

The team made history by qualifying for the competition reserved for home-based players and now want to take it higher in Nairobi.

In this regard, Akizimana said they are taking their fixture against Somalia seriously as victory will propel them to the semi-finals of the tournament.

things have changed

“We are not underrating them (Somalia) on account of last year’s results. Things have changed and we expect to have a tough time in the opening match. We all understand the importance of picking three points in the opening match, we are determined to do just that,” he added.

Burundi have been in camp for the last one month and will use the regional tournament as part of their preparations for the CHAN event where majority of their players are hoping to showcase their talent and attract the attention of major clubs.

Focus will no doubt be on the second match where Tanzania take on Zambia.

Here, both teams will be keen to start on a positive note as they eye a place in the knock-out phase of the two week competition.

On paper, Zambia look favourite, considering that they were African champions less than one year ago.

Even though the team has brought majority of their home-based players, they still have a strong squad capable of causing ripples in this year’s event.

Tanzania are using this tournament to recapture their old form battered by poor results over the years. —[email protected]