Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba believes that Tanzania can bounce back from yesterday’s 3-0 defeat by Morocco and emerge victorious in the ongoing African Cup of Nations in the Ivory Coast.The Taifa Stars suffered a tough loss on Wednesday evening, conceding goals from Selim Amallah, Azzedine Ounahi, and Youssef En-Nesyri.##NAJAVA_MECA_7805753##The team led by former Harambee Stars coach Adel Amrouche finished the game with a man down after Novatus Miroshi’s 70th-minute dismissal.This defeat extended Taifa Stars’ quest for their first-ever win in an African Cup of Nations, with Zambia as their next opponent. Tanzania is currently one of the lower-ranked teams participating in the AFCON in the West African nation.Despite the setback and the evident struggle, with no shots on target, Namwamba remains optimistic that Tanzania can recover and achieve positive results against DR Congo and Zambia, the other teams in Group F. He envisions the team going all the way to lift the coveted trophy, acknowledging that this might be considered a long shot for Taifa Stars.Namwamba stated during AFCON analysis on KBC Channel One,”Anything is possible in football. If recent history has taught us anything, it is that there are no more underdogs in football. I am East African. The East African in me is urging Tanzania, telling them, I believe you can put up a good fight.”He draws inspiration from Morocco’s surprising run at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where they defied the odds to become the first African nation to reach the semifinals of a FIFA World Cup.”Everybody can pretty much beat everybody. No one gave Morocco a chance during the World Cup in Qatar, but they went all the way to the semi-finals. Nothing stops Tanzania from doing well,” Namwamba added.Tanzania is scheduled to play against Zambia on Sunday and conclude their group stage with a match against DR Congo on Wednesday.AFCON 2023: We were outsmarted by Morocco, Amrouche admitsAFCON 2023- GROUP STAGESaturdayIvory Coast – Guinea B. 2-0 (1-0)/Fofana 4, Krasso 58/SundayNigeria – Equatorial Guinea 1-1 (1-1)/Osimhen 38 – Salvador 36/Egypt – Mozambique 2-2 (1-0)/Mohamed 2, Salah 90+7 pen – Witi 55, Bauque 58/Ghana – Cape Verde 1-2 (0-1)/Djiku 56 – Monteiro 17, Rodrigues 90+2/MondaySenegal 3-0 Gambia (1-0)/Gueye 4, Camara 52, 86/Cameroon 1-1 Guinea (0-1)/Magri 51-Bayo 10/Algeria – Angola 1-1 (1-0)/Boundedjah 18 – Mabululu (p) 68/TuesdayBurkina Faso – Mauritania 1-0 (0-0)/Traore 90+5/Tunisia – Namibia 0-1 (0-0)/Hotto 88/Mali – S.Africa (0-0)/Traore 60, Sinayoko 66/WednesdayMorocco – Tanzania 3-0 (1-0)/Saiss 30, Ounahi 77, En Nesyri 80/Dr Congo – Zambia 1-1 (1-1)/WIssa 27 – Kangwa 23/Thursday games17:00 (2.45) Equatorial Guinea (3.05) Guinea-Bissau (3.15)20:00 (2.15) Ivory Coast (3.25) Nigeria (3.90)23:00 (2.05) Egypt (3.25) Ghana (4.30)***odds are subject to change***
