More Nations Cup dirty tricks claimed
More Afcon dirty tricks claimed
Posted: 2010-10-05 15:39
DR Congo coach Robert Nouzaret is spitting mad and already claiming 'dirty tricks' after his Afcon opponents, Cameroon, switched the venue for their weekend clash at the last minute.
Nouzaret said they were initially informed that their match would be played in Yaounde.
"We made arrangements to find a hotel there. And now, the Cameroonians have decided to relocate the match to Garoua."
Nouzaret says basically he has nothing against the home town of Mohammed Iya, president of the Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT), although the Congolese will have to endure a longer trip to reach the North.
"The problem is that my players are now in danger because the province has been in the throes of a cholera epidemic for several weeks.
"We have to send players into a danger zone. It is a scandal. We put players' health at risk," he exploded, saying he is convinced that this decision taken with intimidation on the agenda.
"My leaders have tried to challenge the relocation, but without success.
"The Confederation of African Football, alerted by the Congolese federation, did not budge…"
Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane says they are ready for any dirty tricks in Sierra Leone this weekend, however he should take note that the last time the Leone Stars were beaten at home, international football-starved fans stormed the pitch.
Bafana know from recent experience what a difficult task it will be to come away from the West African country with a positive result.
In June 2008 South Africa suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Sierra Leone in a Nations Cup/World Cup qualifier in Freetown, with their most famous player, Mohammed Kallon, securing the victory for the home side with a 68th minute goal.
Furthermore, the Leone Stars will be in a confident mood after they claimed an impressive 1-1 draw against reigning Africa champions Egypt in Cairo last month.
Yet Sierra Leone's team has not been without controversy in recent days, as coach Christian Cole has opted to leave out several star players, including Kallon.
Two other notable exclusions are Albert Jarret and Kei Kamara, who have both been handed suspensions from the national team due to alleged indiscipline during the Leone Stars' trip to Egypt.
Mosimane is confident that Bafana Bafana will get a positive result in Freetown: "Having beaten us in 2008 they will fancy their chances. They are playing at home so they will be full of confidence, especially after their draw against Egypt earlier this month.
"We need to be cautious in our approach, be tight at the back but at the same time not be afraid to attack. They are very physical and strong mentally, but our boys are in a good mental state following the two victories against Ghana and Niger.
"We are playing good football and that is an excellent foundation for us to tackle this difficult assignment in Sierra Leone. We are confident that we will bring back the results because we need to achieve our objective of retaining our position at the top of the group," said Mosimane.
Comment on this article:
TERMS OF USE: The comments posted below do not reflect the views of KickOff.com. Users are reminded that no misuse of this comment facility will be tolerated. Any abusive, racist or inflammatory comments will be deleted and the user banned. Please report abusive posts to editor@kickoff.com