This East African country is set to make its fourth appearance at the AFCON. Tanzania has only participated in three AFCON tournaments, specifically in 1980, 2019, and 2023. Consequently, Tanzania often faced difficulties during qualification campaigns, and after their debut in 1980, they had to wait 39 years before qualifying again.

Ahead of the 35th edition of the biennial competition organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), which will be Morocco’s second time hosting,Morocco, Gamondi has selected a strong squad to begin preparations in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Morocco was initially set to host the 2015 tournament but withdrew due to concerns over the West African Ebola outbreak. Tanzania has been drawn into Group A alongside Nigeria, Tunisia, and their East African neighbors Uganda.

Mbwana Samatta to captain Tanzania in Morocco

Leading striker and captain Mbwana Samatta, who currently plays for Ligue 1 club Le Havre, has been included in the squad by new coach Gamondi, who will lead the team to Morocco after taking over from Hemed Suleiman. Although Suleiman helped Tanzania qualify for AFCON, he was later dismissed by the Tanzania Football Federation (TFF).

The Argentine coach, who previously managed Mainland Premier League champions Young Africans upon arriving in Tanzania and is currently with Singida Black Stars, has also called up veteran forward Simon Msuva from Iraq Stars League club Al-Talaba SC.

Defender Haji Ali Mnoga, who plays for EFL League Two side Salford City, has also been selected by Gamondi. Mnoga was eligible to represent both England and Tanzania internationally. He made his England U17 debut on February 10, 2019, coming on at halftime against Hungary U17 in a 4-1 penalty friendly victory.

He made his Tanzania debut in a 3-1 friendly win over Central African Republic on March 24, 2022. Mnoga returned to represent Taifa Stars under former coach Adel Amrouche during the 2023 AFCON, starting all three group matches.

Tanzania finished last in Group F, suffering a 3-0 loss to Morocco and drawing twice against Zambia and DR Congo. Despite these outcomes, the Taifa Stars achieved their highest ever points tally at the AFCON.

Cyprian Thobias Kachwele, a defender for Whitecaps FC 2 in MLS Next Pro, is included in the squad after receiving his first call-up to Taifa Stars in 2024 for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (held in 2024). He was also called up for the 2025 AFCON qualifiers in September 2024 and made his debut on September 10 against Guinea.

Upon his appointment to replace Hemed, the 61-year-old promised to develop a strong and competitive national team in preparation for AFCON and future challenges. He also expressed his intention to collaborate closely with local players and leverage his experience in the Tanzanian league to enhance the team’s performance.

He stated, as quoted by Daily News: “I have aimed to create a clear identity for my team both in attack and defense because I want a robust, well-balanced squad. We need to intensify our efforts as we approach the upcoming matches.

“We will strive to build a solid team so that we can achieve positive results in every game we play.”

Some of the locally based players selected for AFCON include Hussein Masalanga (Singida Black Stars), Yakoub Suleiman (Simba SC), Yona Amosi (Pamba Jiji), Zuberi Foba (Azam FC), Iddi Selemani (Azam FC), Ibrahim Abduallah (Young Africans), Dickson Job (Young Africans), Feisal Salum (Azam FC), Ahmed Pipino (Azam FC), and Abdul Suleiman (Azam FC).

Others are; Morice Abraham (Simba SC), Pascal Msindo (Azam FC), Wilson Nangu (Simba SC), Mohamed Hussein (Yanga SC), Lusajo Mwaikenda (Azam FC), Mukrim Abdallah (Singida Black Stars), Nassor Saadun (Azam FC), Elias Lawi (Azam FC), Yusuphu Kagoma (Simba SC), Shomari Kapombe (Simba SC), Mudhathir Yahya (Yanga SC), Athumani Makambo (Coastal Union), Vedastus Masinde (Simba SC), Bakari Mwamnyeto (Yanga SC), Iddi Kipagwile (Dodoma Jiji), and Vitalisy Mayanga (Mbeya City).

In the previous AFCON in 2023, Tanzania was placed in Group F alongside Morocco, DR Congo, and Zambia. They did not advance beyond the group stage, losing their opening match 3-0 to the Atlas Lions, drawing 1-1 with Chipolopolo, and drawing 0-0 with the Leopards.

Tanzania will start their campaign in Morocco facing the Super Eagles on December 23, then play Uganda on December 27, before concluding their group matches against Tunisia’s Carthage Eagles on December 30.