Young Africans (Yanga SC) coach Nasreddine Nabi has revealed why his team struggled to break down Singida United in the semi-finals of the Azam Sports Federation Cup (ASFC).
The Jangwani-giants had just returned from South Africa where they had successfully defeated Marumo Gallants 4-1 on aggregate to book their first-ever place in the final of the Caf Confederation Cup.
Against Singida, the Timu ya Mwananchi were forced to wait until the 82nd minute when substitute Fiston Mayele broke the deadlock with a volley to steer his side to a 1-0 victory and a second successive final slot.
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“We had to rotate the squad because we have a big match in the Caf Confederation Cup final; some players needed to rest and give others a playing time,” Nabi explained as quoted by Daily News.
“The most important thing is that we have managed to cruise to the final, and we could not make the best of the first half because of the players’ fatigue after a long travel from South Africa to here.
“This forced us to make substitutions in the second half, which paid well as we succeeded in scoring the winner.”
Yanga will now come up against Azam FC, who defeated Simba SC 2-1 in the other semis clash, in the final that will decide who deserves the season’s ASFC crown.
In the Confederation Cup, Yanga will face USM Alger of Algeria in the final. The first leg will be played in Tanzania on May 28 with the return fixture scheduled for Algiers on June 2.