We must work hard ahead of CAF Champions League quarter final – Simba SC Coach

The head coach of Simba SC, Robert Oliveira has called for hard work ahead of the quarter final stage of the 2022/2023 TotalEnergies CAF Champions League.

Tanzania’s Simba SC are the only team from the Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) Zone that qualified for the quarters.

Simba SC qualified after finishing second in Group C behind Morocco’s Raja Casablanca. To reach the quarter final stage Oliveira’s team picked 1-0 wins against Uganda’s Vipers SC, beat Horoya AC 7-0 and also lost two matches to Raja Casablanca and one defeat away to Horoya AC.

But Oliveira has made it clear that after making it to the quarter final, the tactics might change because this is now knock out. “We have to double our efforts because all the teams that have made it to the quarters are strong teams. I have told the players that getting to the quarter final was not easy task, but the effort must be doubled now,” added the coach.

Oliveira says they must work hard to strengthen the defending department which saw them concede seven goals in the group stage. “We are going to the knock out stage and if you make mistakes you are punished and knocked out,” he added.

The other teams from the CECAFA Zone that played in the group stage but failed to progress include; Al Hilal, El Merriekh (Sudan) and Vipers SC (Uganda).

The draw for the quarter final stage will take place on April 5^th in Cairo. The other teams that will be drawn include; Wydad AC (Morocco), JC Kabylie (Algeria), Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa), Al Ahly (Egypt), Raja Casablanca (Morocco), ES Tunis (Tunisia), CR Belouizdad (Algeria).