Taifa Stars lock horns with Morocco in AFCON Group F

The Group F encounter will be hosted at the Stade Laurent Pokou in San Pedro, kicking off at 8 pm East African Time.

This encounter marks a momentous occasion for Tanzania, their third appearance in the prestigious continental tournament.

Grouped alongside Morocco, Zambia, and DR Congo in the challenging Group F, Taifa Stars are determined to defy expectations and carve their path to glory.

The Atlas Lions built upon their historic run to the 2022 World Cup semi-finals after losing just one of their eight matches in 2023, which came at the hands of South Africa (2-1) during the 2023 AFCON qualifiers.

Their biggest result came on March 26 when Walid Regragui's side beat Brazil 2-1 in a friendly in Tangier and the side warmed up for the tournament in Ivory Coast with a 3-1 victory over Sierra Leone on January 11 to make it five games unbeaten.

Taifa Stars also enjoyed a relatively positive 2023, losing only two of the team's seven matches.

The Tanzanian squad came up against Morocco as recently as November 21, going down 2-0 in a 2026 World Cup qualifier after kicking off the campaign with a 1-0 win against Niger three days earlier.

Adel Amrouche-coached Taifa Stars concluded their preparations for the continental showpiece with a 2-0 defeat to Egypt in a friendly which took place in Cairo on January 7.

Surprising results recorded in the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals in Ivory Coast have been described as a morale boost to Taifa Stars.

There have been unexpected results in some of the AFCON matches where minnows have embarrassed higher-ranked opponents. 

Cape Verde defeated Ghana 2-1 in the former's Africa Cup of Nations opener on Sunday and Egypt, one of Africa’s giants, huffed and puffed before they were awarded an added time penalty to get a 2-2 draw with Mozambique.

Meanwhile, after facing Morocco, Tanzania will take on Zambia on Sunday before completing their mission against DR Congo on Wednesday, January 24th.

Already, Tanzanians have a strong belief that this time, their team will stamp new records in Ivory Coast.

Taifa Stars’ full 27-member squad tasked for the 2023 AFCON mission is made up of goalkeepers Aishi Manula, Beno Kakolanya, and Kwesi Kawawa.

Defenders include Haji Mnoga, Mohammed Hussein, Lusajo Mwaikenda, Abdulmalik Zakaria, Abdi Banda, Dickson Job, Ibrahim Bacca, Bakari Mwamnyeto, Novatus Dismas, and Miamo Danilo.

Feisal Salum, Himid Mao, Mzamiru Yassin, Sospeter Bajana, Ben Starkie, Tarryn Allarakhia, Mudathir Yahya, and Morice Abraham are the squad’s midfielders.

Skipper Mbwana Samatta, Simon Msuva, Mohammed Omar, Charles Mmombwa, Kibu Denis, and Cyprian Kachwele are Taifa Stars’ forwards.