Photo: Confederation of African Football. SENIOR national soccer team, Taifa Stars, head coach, Kim Poulsen, has said he will use the forthcoming international friendly match against Malawi, scheduled to take place at the National Stadium in Dar es Salaam on Saturday this week, to select his first choice squad.
Kim said shortly after his side's training at the Karume Memorial Stadium in Dar es Salaam on Saturday that he will assess the performance of his players in the match and select the squad that will face Cote d' Ivoire in the first leg of the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers, African Zone, penned for June 2 in Abidjan.
Taifa Stars have camped at the Tansoma Hotel at Kariakoo in the city to prepare for the qualifiers against the African soccer powerhouse and Kim has hardly shown any fear at the opponents. "Yes I know Cote d' Ivoire is a big team comprising experienced players...it is a challenge to me and I am happy to play teams of that calibre," said Kim.
Kim said his philosophy lies in an attacking football and he ensures that his strikers exploit every chance that comes their way. "I will attack when I play in Abidjan and I will want my players to exploit every chance they get in the match but we also need to defend well so that we can not concede goals," he said.
Kim said currently he is focusing on the international friendly match against Malawi on Saturday considering that the game will give him a clear picture on how his players have grasped his instructions. He praised experienced players for doing their best in assisting young players in understanding the instructions.
Strikers, Mbwana Samata and Thomas Ulimwengu from TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are the only players that have yet to join Stars' camp as the duo is still waiting to play for their club in the last match of the DRC top flight on Monday.
Simba SC midfielder, Haruna Moshi, also missed out on the Saturday training sessions as the player accompanied his team's contingent, which travelled to the DRC to attend the funeral of midfielder, Patrick Mafisango, who died in a car accident in Dar es Salaam on Thursday.
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