Coach Alagie Sarr and his CHAN Gambia team return to the dock tomorrow, and their testimony on the pitch determines the verdict in the country’s quest to advance to the next phase of the CHAN 2018 qualifiers. Bereft of victory or a goal in Banjul, the Gambian team now face a mammoth task to eliminate the vice champions of this prestigious championship for domestic league players.
Even from the 90 minutes display in Banjul last Saturday Mali have proven to be the favourite team for this tie despite a second half impressive performance by Gambia.
‘We must now go for an away goal in Bamako,” Sarr said at his post match press conference. He did not state how but his arsenal has enough lethal force to cause an upset in Bamako. Some of them include the fleet footed Mustapha Drammeh were left on the bench far too long than they deserved and the general feeling is if he starts in Bamako, the team can attain confidence earlier than it did in Banjul. And indeed an away goal will be a precious asset in this tie-breaking match.
Meanwhile the boys have since landed and tested the turf under the sweltering Bamako heat. “We are in good shape and the boys are still in high spirit. We are not distracted and the boys are ready to give out what it takes to qualify the country to the next phase,” a GFF source quoted coach Alagie Sarr.
The winner of this tie will meet Mauritania or Liberia for the next stage of the qualifiers. Mauritania seems to be the likely candidate here after beating Liberia 2 -0 in Monrovia last week. They will finish the tie in Nouakchott, later today.
