World Cup Qualifiers: Tanzania handed trick start away to DR Congo

Tanzania have been handed a tricky start to the 2022 World Cup qualifiers after getting an away trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The East Africans failed to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon from Group J, with Tunisia and Equatorial Guinea taking the top two positions. The Taifa Stars finished third with Libya at the bottom.

Coach Kim Poulsen will be targeting a strong start away to the Leopards in a clash scheduled to be played from June 5-8 with the second game scheduled between June 11-14 in Tanzania.

The Stars will then play Benin on September 1-4 to complete the first round of matches in Group J. 

After crashing out of the road to Cameroon, captain Mbwana Samatta apologised to the supporters. The Taifa Stars were among the participants in the finals staged in Egypt in 2019 and were looking to make it their second straight appearance.

"It was not our intention to end up [finishing third in the Afcon qualifiers]," the striker told Goal after their final game against Libya where they won by a solitary goal to finish with seven points.  

"We know we have hurt the fans because we have failed to qualify for the Afcon finals. We know everyone is hurt, it was not our intention, we had planned to do well in the qualifiers but have finished third, it is something we will have to work on, we must regroup now and look at the future to avoid such."

Tanzania joined neighbours Uganda and Kenya, who also failed to make the cut to Cameroon.

The World Cup qualifiers will now present another opportunity for the Taifa Stars to put a smile on their fans' faces.

Kenya are in Group E alongside neighbours Uganda and Rwanda, with West Africa giants Mali completing the pool.

The Harambee Stars will start their campaign on June 5 or 6 against Cranes in the Migingo Derby at Nairobi.

Tanzania full fixture schedule:
DR Congo vs Tanzania June 5-8
Tanzania vs Madagascar 11-14
Tanzania vs Benin September 1-4
Benin vs Tanzania September 5-7
Tanzania vs DR Congo October 6-9
Madagascar vs Tanzania October 10-12