Poulsen: We can still reach finals
Taifa Stars head coach Kim Poulsen shouts instructions during their 2014 World Cup Group C first leg qualifier against Morocco in March. photo | file
What you need to know:
- Saturday’s defeat, the second in four matches, has put Stars in a fix. They now need not only six more points in their next two matches to sail through, but also pray that Cote d’Ivoire lose one of their final two games.
Marrakech. After seeing his team go down 2-1 to Morocco in Saturday’s World Cup qualifier, Taifa Stars head coach Kim Poulsen says he is still optimistic of guiding his team to the final round.
Forty African teams are battling it out for 10 berths in the third and final round where the group winners play off over two legs to determine who will travel to Brazil
Saturday’s defeat, the second in four matches, has put Stars in a fix. They now need not only six more points in their next two matches to sail through, but also pray that Cote d’Ivoire lose one of their final two games.
But Poulsen insists that his boys, who are gunning for their first appearance at the World Cup finals, cannot afford to mope as they attempt to catch Group C leaders Cote d’Ivoire.
The Elephants, as the Cote d’Ivoire team is popularly known, took a giant stride towards the next stage of the qualifiers on Saturday when they beat Gambia 3-0.
“We remain committed to our goals. We must forget this defeat and focus on our next assignment because we want to be in the touching distance of Cote d’Ivoire before our final match,” said Poulsen.
Following the defeat, Stars remain second in the four-team pool with six points from four games, four points adrift of leaders Cote d’Ivoire and one ahead of Morocco’s Lions of Atlas.
Gambia, who have not won a match so far, remain bottom-placed with one point after four outings.
Stars, who were expected to return home last night, will swing back into action on Sunday when they go head-to-head with the Ivorians in a return leg at the National Stadium.
In Saturday’s clash at Marrakesh Stadium, the Atlas Lions grabbed their first victory of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers with goals from Hamdallah and Youssef El Arabi.
The home side went into the break leading 1-0 through a Hamdallah penalty spot that resulted from a careless tackle by Aggrey Morris that saw him sent off in the 39th minute.
With a man down, Taifa Stars head coach Kim Poulsen made two changes just before the break, with Khamis Mcha and Nadir Haroub coming on for Mrisho Ngassa and Thomas Ulimwengu.
Youssef El Arabi scored in the 50th minute with a brilliant footwork as he beat Juma kaseja to send the ball into the net and give Morocco a 2-0 lead.
Taifa Stars came back into the game in the 61st minute, with Amri Kiemba pulling one goal back through a powerful strike from outside the box.
TP Mazembe striker Mbwana Samatta came close to equalise for Taifa Stars but his efforts went wide.
With this result, Tanzania stay second in Group C with six points, four behind leaders Cote d’Ivoire who have ten, Morocco is third with five while Gambia are bottom with one.
