Tanzania will bid farewell to the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations when they take on Group C winnersAlgeria at the Al Salam Stadium in Cairo on Monday.
Kick-off is at 9pm CAT.
Tanzania’s first Afcon since 1980 has not gone to plan for coach Emmanuel Amunike and his players, as they enter this final group match having already been mathematically eliminated from the tournament.
It’s do or die for most teams today as they look to secure a spot in the knockout stage.#TotalAFCON2019 pic.twitter.com/yEwp2IfzZs— SuperSport ???? (@SuperSportTV) July 1, 2019
The Taifa Stars opened their campaign with a 2-0 loss to Senegal and followed that up on Thursday night with a heart-breaking 3-2 loss to East African rivals Kenya. Amunike’s side twice led through Simon Msuva and Mbwana Samatta, but were ultimately out-fought by the Harambee Stars.
Being guaranteed to finish bottom of the group means Tanzania have only pride to fight for, but they could pick up a consolation win against an Algerian team which is likely to field a weakened line-up.
Group C concludes today…Here’s what matchday 2 brought! ?? #TotalAFCON2019 pic.twitter.com/qNuwzaG7ZQ— CAF (@CAF_Online) July 1, 2019
This is because the North Africans impressively defeated Senegal 1-0 on Thursday (thanks to a goal early in the second half through Youcef Belaili) and therefore secured not only a spot in the last 16, but also first place in Group C.
Kenya and Senegal clash in a massive Group C match at #AFCON2019 tonight, here’s what the log looks like going to the last set of fixtures. pic.twitter.com/hnrWMyRA26— SuperSport ???? (@SuperSportTV) July 1, 2019
This gives coach Djamel Belmadi the luxury of resting key players such as Riyad Mahrez and Yacine Brahimi (among others) to ensure they are fit and fresh for a last 16 clash against a third-placed team from one of Groups A, B or F next Sunday.
In head-to-head stats, Tanzania and Algeria have met in 10 previous matches. The Fennec Foxes have claimed five wins compared to one for the Taifa Stars, while four matches have been drawn. The teams’ most recent meeting was a friendly in Algiers in March last year which the home team won 4-1.
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