Taifa Stars start AFCON 2025 quest against Ethiopia today

Dar es Salaam. The Tanzania national football team, Taifa Stars, will kick off their quest today to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals for the fourth time as they take on Ethiopia.

The match is scheduled to kick off at 7 PM at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium, with Taifa Stars players confident and hopeful of securing a strong result on their home turf.

Taifa Stars are in Group H, which also includes DR Congo and Guinea.

A victory will take the team to the top of the standings, depending on the outcome of the match between DR Congo and Guinea, who will clash on September 6 at the Stade des Martyrs in Kinshasa.

A strong start would help the team overcome the disappointment of the previous qualification phase, where they failed to win their opening match, drawing 1-1 against Niger.

Despite this early draw, the Taifa Stars rallied in the subsequent five matches, finishing second in Group J, which was led by Algeria, with Uganda and Niger in the bottom two. This performance secured their place in AFCON for the third time.

Furthermore, a good result today will boost their psychological state as they prepare for their next group match against Guinea in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast. The Taifa Stars enter today’s match with confidence, having performed well recently.

In contrast, Ethiopia has had a mixed performance in their last five matches, with only one win, two draws, and two losses.

For the first time in a long while, the Taifa Stars will play a competitive match without their key strikers and team captains, Mbwana Samatta and Saimon Msuva, who were not called up for various reasons.

However, the return of Dickson Job, who had been absent from the Taifa Stars squad for three separate stints after the AFCON finals held earlier this year in Ivory Coast, provides the coaching staff with a wider selection range for today’s match.

Head coach Hemed “Morocco” Suleiman stated that they are not intimidated by Ethiopia and are determined to secure a win.

“We know we are playing against Ethiopia, a team we haven’t faced in four or five years, but they are strong and play as a team. However, we are focused and determined. We aim to confront every opponent ahead of us, and we are ready for today’s match,” said Morocco.

Defender Dickson Job added that the team is well-prepared and committed to winning.

“As players, we are 100 percent ready. The coaches have done their job in training, so all that remains is to pray that we perform well. We assure Tanzanians that we will fight with all our might to bring them joy and achieve good results,” said Job.