Ndiraya prepares for tougher Angolans

NGEZI PLATINUM STARS coach is expecting a tougher duel when his men take on seasoned campaigners Clube Recreativo Desportivo do Libolo of Angola in the CAF Confederation Cup first round.

The Mhondoro side edged Mauritian side Pamplemousses 2-1 on aggregate to book their date against Angola.

They will travel to Angola for the first leg on the weekend of March 10 to 12.

“It is going to be a difficult game. There is a lot of difference, but I think the Angolan side are better in terms of football development,” said Ndiraya.

“So, the game will be a more difficult one than that against Pamplemousses and we have to be adequately prepared and take it a gear up Our league is not active and so, obviously fitness is a concern and it is not easy to match up with the competitive teams.

“What is more important is to have the players improve on their fitness levels and also shift the mindset now that they are facing a stronger and difficult opponent.”

The Angolan side, which also boasts a competitive basketball team, has won the league title four times since 2010.

They reached the group stage of the Champions once in 2013.

The club is under the leadership of a Portuguese coach and has three foreign players in their ranks — a Portuguese goalkeeper, a Brazilian and a player from Democratic Republic of Congo.

“We have already gone outside the country and played three matches in Zambia, but now we will play local sides as part of our preparations,” said Ndiraya.

“In terms of fitness we are now better than most teams which are having their pre-seasons.

“The weekend’s match was quite competitive. I was happy with the progress so far. It was different from the first leg with improvement in every department.

“The defence had a better showing compared to the first leg and we also made changes bringing three more faces and managed to keep a clean sheet.

“Our opponents never got a clear chance whilst we created a lot of chances, on a good day we could have scored at least five goals.”

The club have said they want to enjoy themselves in the tournament.

“We want to enjoy ourselves in the tournament, but in enjoying we are also saying we want to run and go far as we can in the tournament.

“Our focus is to reach the group stage of the tournament.

“We have said to ourselves that if we manage that feat it means we have made some history,” said Ndiraya.