Tanzania: ‘We are not scared,’ but Gamondi is two Yanga men short

Tanzania arrive for Friday's AFCON 2027 qualifier against the Super Eagles in Uyo insisting they are not afraid of Nigeria, but coach Miguel Gamondi will be without Young Africans pair Clement Mzize and Dickson Job for the double-header.

The Taifa Stars face Eric Chelle's side at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium on Friday 13 November at 17:00 WAT, with the return leg in Tanzania on Tuesday 17 November.

Tanzania have one point from their first two Group L games, after a 2-0 defeat by Guinea-Bissau and a 1-1 draw with Madagascar. As co-hosts of the 2027 finals with Kenya and Uganda, they have already qualified, which is why the race Nigeria are really in is with Guinea-Bissau.

‘Football is a game of 90 minutes'

Tanzania Football Federation official Almasi Kasongo spoke to journalists after the squad landed in Uyo on Monday, as reported by Naija News.

“We are not scared. Football is a game of 90 minutes. We know the quality of Nigeria's players and their pedigree.”

He added that the team is well prepared for the trip.

Two Yanga players stay at home

Mzize and Job were left behind when Tanzania travelled to Nigeria. Clifford Ndimbo, the federation's director of media and communications, confirmed that both had been allowed to stay with Young Africans for treatment, Blueprint reported.

Both players had only recently come back from spells on the sidelines. Their absence leaves Gamondi with 22 players from the 24 he named, a squad split evenly between 12 home-based players and 12 based abroad, as Soccernet noted when the Taifa Stars made their early arrival in Uyo.

Analysis: confidence without pressure, but the record leans one way

Kasongo's message fits a side with nothing to lose in this group. Tanzania's place at the finals is secure, so these two games are a free test against one of the continent's strongest squads, and teams in that position often play with a looseness that can make them awkward opponents.

The history points the other way. Nigeria have won seven of the 11 meetings between the sides and drawn the other four, so Tanzania have never beaten the Super Eagles. The most recent meeting was a 2-1 Nigeria win in the group stage of AFCON 2025.

Losing two players from the same club also narrows Gamondi's options over two games in five days. For Nigeria, who sit second on three points behind Guinea-Bissau, that is welcome news, but it changes little about the task: anything less than a convincing win in Uyo would hand Tanzania exactly the result their federation is talking up.

Gamondi's side train in Uyo this week before Friday's kick-off, and the second meeting in Tanzania follows four days later.