Tanzania’s national football team, Taifa Stars, have set their sights on collecting maximum points from their next two 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying matches despite already securing a place in the tournament as one of the hosts.
Tanzania will face Guinea-Bissau on September 25 at the New Amaan Complex Stadium in Zanzibar before taking on Madagascar on September 29.
Taifa Stars midfielder Feisal Salum “Fei Toto” said preparations for the matches were progressing well, with intense competition among players for places in the starting lineup.
“The preparations are going well and competition in camp is high because every player wants to get an opportunity to represent the country,” Fei Toto said.
He said Taifa Stars’ ambition for AFCON 2027 was to go further than they did at the previous tournament in Morocco, adding that representing the national team came with the responsibility of carrying the hopes of Tanzanians.
Fei Toto also urged Tanzanians to continue supporting the team through prayers and other forms of encouragement, saying such backing motivates players to perform better.
Defender Mohamed Hussein said the experience gained from the Morocco tournament would be valuable as Tanzania prepares for AFCON 2027.
He said the presence of several players who featured in the previous tournament would give the team additional experience.
“Although we have already qualified, we will approach the remaining qualifying matches seriously because every player understands the honour of representing the country,” Mohamed said.
He added that after AFCON, another major ambition would be to help Tanzania qualify for the FIFA World Cup, but said the team’s immediate focus was on preparing for the continental tournament.
Meanwhile, forward Kibu Denis said training sessions were progressing well, with the intensity and instructions from the technical bench helping players prepare for the upcoming fixtures.
Kibu said the team was targeting six points from the two matches and called on Tanzanians from both the mainland and Zanzibar to turn up in large numbers at New Amaan Complex on September 25 to support Taifa Stars.
Tanzania, together with Kenya and Uganda, will host the 2027 AFCON finals. Despite their automatic qualification as hosts, Taifa Stars are continuing to participate in the qualifying campaign, using the matches to strengthen their preparations for the tournament.