DAR ES SALAAM: SIMBA coach Roberto Oliveira lauded his team for their impressive 2-1 triumph over Ihefu and confidently affirmed their readiness for their upcoming match against Young Africans on Sunday at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam.
The Reds have maintained an undefeated streak of six matches this season to accumulate 18 points from six matches, but they have a game in hand to gain an edge over Yanga, who are equal by points, but Yanga has the better goal difference.
"Listen, the most important thing for us was to win this game before the derby match. This is positive for us and we are going to have time to recover," he said.
According to him, the Ihefu game was not necessarily difficult. However, he mentioned that the team was exhausted from travelling after the African Football League (AFL) games, and had a lot of pressure to win every game.
The Brazilian tactician hailed the players he brought in the second half Moses Phiri and Luís Miquissone highlighting the tactical changes paid off well.
On his part, Ihefu trainer Moses Basena pointed out that they failed to create enough chances to score and those few they got did not make good use of them. He also complained about his players repeatedly losing possession, leading to costly mistakes that their opponents capitalised on.
"We were giving away balls cheaply and that proved costly against a strong team like Simba, who punished us. Our next step is to react to this loss and start looking for points in upcoming matches.
"The main challenge we face now is the extensive travel requirements for this fixture. I see a lot of gaps in the schedule and I'm not sure why they compacted the fixtures. We have to spend thousands of kilometres on the road, play a match, and then travel another thousand kilometres...I think it's important to reconsider the fixture schedule," said the Ugandan coach.
Today, the Premier League will witness three matches taking place at different venues across the country. JKT Tanzania will host Dodoma Jiji at Azam Complex, while Tanzania Prisons will face Geita Gold at Sokoine Stadium in Mbeya. Finally, Kagera Sugar will entertain Tabora United at Kaitaba Stadium.
Tomorrow, one encounter will unfold as Kinondoni Municipal Council will face Mtibwa Sugar at Uhuru Stadium in Dar es Salaam.
