To confirm their seriousness ahead of the game, Simba formed a rallying call by coining ‘Total War in Dar’ as their slogan on Friday.
“The last time we met here in Dar es Salaam we defeated Al Ahly 1-0 in 2019 and our slogan then was Yes, we can ,” Simba spokesman Haji Manara told reporters on Friday.
“Before the last game [vs FC Platinum] we said War in Dar a war that was fought in 90 minutes, it was a war of blood and sweat and we emerged victors.
“This time around the clarion call is Total War in Dar . Al Ahly are a big team but we are at a point of no return. We must fight them and we must win.”
Simba SC: We are capable of beating Al Ahly again kingfut.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kingfut.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Others set to miss out are veteran defender Erasto Nyoni and Ibrahim Ame, and midfielder Jonas Mkude.
Simba media officer Haji Manara is, however, confident the team will get a positive result despite missing the four players.
“We will miss the services of Bocco, Nyoni, Ame, and Mkude but that will not stop us from beating Azam,” Manara told
Goal on Sunday.
“The team has prepared well, we know what we want from Azam, we need the three points and that is what we are going for, we are sure the game will end in our favour.”
Meanwhile, Azam will miss the services of three players among them defender Yakub Mohamed who will be suspended for the tie having accumulated three yellow cards.
During the launch, Simba’sCEO Barbara confirmed the first game will be played on January 27 at 17:00 at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium.
The club’s spokesperson Haji Manara explained why they settled on the two clubs as their opponents for the tournament.
“This is a big thing and Simba have become the first club to organise a tournament that involves the biggest clubs in Africa,” Manara said during the launch. “No one does not know how big TP Mazembe are or Al-Hilal of Sudan.
“Simba will open the competition with a game against Al-Hilal and on Friday, Al-Hilal will face TP Mazembe. On Sunday, which will be the climax of the tournament, Simba will clash with TP Mazembe at 4:00 pm.