Nabi unsure of his presence in Yanga after 2022/23 CAF CC final

07Jun 2023
Nassir Nchimbi
Dar es Salaam
Sport
The Guardian
Nabi unsure of his presence in Yanga after 2022/23 CAF CC final

YANGA's head coach Nasreddine Nabi has said that he is not sure about his future with the 2022/23 NBC Premier League champions next season after the great success the club has registered this season.

YANGA's head coach Nasreddine Nabi.

Nabi broke the news after receiving his runners-up medal in the final of the 2022/23 CAF Confederation Cup after Yanga had confronted Algeria's USM Algers in the clash, which ended with a 1-0 victory for the Tanzanian club at the Stade de Juliette in Algeria.

Yanga's success in the rematch was not enough to see the side lift the continental showpiece's silverware.

As such, USM Algers clinched the CAF Confederation Cup trophy for the first time in the club’s history.

Yanga's shot stopper, Djigui Diarra, bagged the TotalEnergies Man of the Match award in the duel, thanks to his superb performance during the game.

The two clubs recorded a 2-2 aggregate score after the two-legged final, which eventually went in favour of the Algerian side given it beat Yanga 2-1 in the first-leg encounter at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

Nabi disclosed: "At the moment, I don't know what the future holds, for me to stay with the club will depend on the strategies and clear plans for the club in the future."

"I did not come here for money or to be called Professor Nabi, I want to win because this is the responsibility Yanga fans gave us," the gaffer noted.

"It is not right for a coach to take this job knowing that you can't deliver by winning something for the fans, I love Tanzania, this is a reality from the Serengeti, Kilimanjaro to normal places like Kigamboni- I love every bit of it," Nabi disclosed.

He noted: "I am not saying this because of bringing attention to my popularity, the majority know that I love Tanzania."

Asked whether he will resort to extending his contract as free agency comes at the end of the season, the gaffer said: "To extend the contract needs a lot but for the moment maybe I have done enough, and maybe another coach can take Yanga from where I have reached." 

The gaffer noted: "It may be time for another coach at Yanga but if you ask more to be honest I don't know what holds for the future."

The Tunisia-born gaffer, alongside Yanga, missed out on an opportunity to clinch the CAF Confederation Cup title on Saturday night but, to Tanzania’s soccer giants, it is a historic achievement that cannot be easily forgotten.

Yanga has won the Community Shield, and NBC Premier League, and will battle it out in this season's Azam Sports Federation Cup final in Tanga on June 12.

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