Why Yanga signed Mwenda as they leave for DRC
What you need to know:
- Mwenda, who has already joined the team, is expected to provide options for the team’s head coach, Sead Ramovic, who has primarily relied on Ivorian right-back Kouassi Attohoula Yao, a dominant player in the position.
Dar es Salaam. Tanzania Mainland defending champions, Young Africans (Yanga), have started strengthening their squad by recruiting right-back Israel Mwenda.
Mwenda, who has already joined the team, is expected to provide options for the team’s head coach, Sead Ramovic, who has primarily relied on Ivorian right-back Kouassi Attohoula Yao, a dominant player in the position.
Yao has been dependable despite the presence of another defender, Kibwana Shomari, who has, however, not been given much playing time since the tenure of the previous coach, Miguel Gamondi.
Several times, Gamondi opted to field attacking midfielder Dennis Nkane in the right-back position or, alternatively, used Dickson Job in the role. Apart from Mwenda, Yanga are also said to be in the final stages of recruiting Kelvin Nashon on loan from Singida Black Stars. Nashon is already in Dar es Salaam and could be officially introduced soon.
Meanwhile, Yanga are scheduled to depart this morning for Lubumbashi, DR Congo, ahead of their CAF Champions League match against TP Mazembe.
Yanga will leave the country at 11am aboard an Air Tanzania Limited flight for the match, which will take place this Saturday at 4pm East African Time.
The match is crucial for the Jangwani Street giants as they seek to qualify for the knockout stage of the competition.
With only two matches played so far, the stakes are high for Yanga, who sit at the bottom of Group A without any points after consecutive losses, while TP Mazembe are third with one point.
At the top of the group are Al Hilal Omdurman of Sudan with six points, followed by MC Alger of Algeria with four points.
A positive development for Yanga is the return of four key players: Khalid Aucho, Chadrack Boka, Clement Mzize, and Dickson Job. Their inclusion is expected to strengthen the squad as they aim to secure their first win of the group stage.
The match will be officiated by Djindo Louis Houngnandande, marking his second assignment in the CAF Champions League.
His first match was on November 26, when he officiated the clash between Egypt’s Pyramids FC and Angola’s Grupo Desportivo Sagrada Esperança in Cairo, where Pyramids secured a convincing 5-1 victory.
