By John Kwoba
NAIROBI, July 27 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian side Yanga FC faces a make or break clash against Kenya's Gor Mahia in the second round of group matches for the CAF Confederation Cup in Dar es Salaam on Sunday.
Gor Mahia hold the advantage and will be carrying a 4-0 thumping advantage from their first leg encounter in Nairobi, and a win in Dar es Salaam will move them closer to the competition's quarterfinal stage.
However, it does not look rosy for Yanga who are still rooted at the bottom of Group D with just a point after three games.
The Tanzanian side needs maximum points to remain in the hunt for a place at the next stage or they will bid farewell to their continental ambitions.
Gor Mahia's head coach Dylan Kerr says his side is ready for the test and believes he has what it takes to take the team through to the finals of the continental competition.
The other two teams in the group are USM Algiar of Algeria and Rayon Sports of Rwanda.
"We have a strong team and even after we lost Meddy Kagere to Simba, we have a motivated squad that is united and ready to fight to the last man," said Kerr.
Yanga has faced long spell of poor form coupled with financial constraints, which saw players boycott training sessions over unpaid bonuses after their 4-0 loss to Gor Mahia in Nairobi last week. It was their 14th loss in 15 games.
Yanga are yet to score in the Confederation Cup and have chalked up eight in their last three games.
DR Congo-born coach Mwinyi Zahera, who joined the team two months ago, is hoping his charges can revive their campaign with a victory against their Kenyan guests despite the problems, Zahera told CAF on Friday.
"Our plans are in tatters because we couldn't train for almost five days because of economic hardship facing the club as players were demanding their salaries and signing-on fees. It is very hard for us.
"We know that this game against Gor Mahia is the only chance to revive our hopes to go through the next stage. It is a must win game and we need to work hard to make it happen," Zahera added.
However, Zahera believes that if they can get the best out of Gor Mahia, their hopes of progressing past the groups are still alive.
"Gor Mahia is a good team and we have to be ready for them, but looking at our condition we cannot promise more," he said.
