DECEMBER 2000 SPORT HEADLINES

Friday, January 26, 2001 - Web posted at 10:27:37 AM GMT

Namibia face a mammoth task
HELGE SCHUTZ

A victory for the Brave Warriors in today's World Cup qualifying match against Algeria in Algiers could put Namibia at the top of Group 3, but it will demand a mammoth task to topple the Algerians in front of their home crowd.

Algeria is currently at the bottom of Group 3, with one point after drawing 1-all at home to Senegal and losing 2-1 away to Morocco.

Namibia are just above them, also with one point after drawing 0-0 to Morocco last year, while Egypt also have one point, after drawing 0-0 away to Senegal.

The group is headed by Morocco who have four points from two matches.

After a poor performance at the Africa Cup of Nations finals in Burkina Faso in 1998, Algeria was rebuilt from scratch and they are now starting to produce the results.

They came fourth at the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations finals, losing the third-place play-off to South Africa, while they are currently ranked 15th in Africa as opposed to Namibia's 17th position.

Playing in front of a fanatical 40 000-strong crowd a fortnight ago, Algeria beat Burundi 2-1 to move up to second place in Group 4 of the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying competition behind Burkina Faso.

Their goals were scored by winger Ghazi and centre-forward Tasfaout, who has now scored 31 goals for his country.

According to reports from Algeria their training squad includes nine foreign-based professionals, which includes their star midfielder, Ali Benarbia, who currently plays for Paris Saint Germain.

Another player who could be a thorn in Namibia's side is their busy midfielder, Dziri, who created a goal against Burundi and also came close to scoring himself.

According to the FIFA rankings there is not much separating the teams and if Ted Dumitru's new-look combination can gel, Namibia could well shock the Algerians.

Although the Namibian team is mostly made up of home-based players, they are starting to combine as a unit, with some of the new caps starting to make their presence felt.

In attack, Mogale Naruseb has improved with every match and impressed with his pace, while he also scored two goals in Namibia's friendly match against Friends Football Club last weekend.

Augustinus Mukoya was also sharp, scoring a hat-trick against Friends, while Floris Diergaardt scored a spectacular volleyed goal when he came on as a substitute in the second half.

It is however in the midfield where the Brave Warriors will have to assert themselves and create scoring chances.

The inclusion of Collin Benjamin will give Namibia added strength on the wing, while Quinton Jacobs, Lollo Goraseb and Congo Hindjou all have the potential to turn a match instantly.

In defence Namibia could struggle against Algeria's speedy strikers - an area where Dumitru is clearly concerned about Namibia's lack of pace.

He indicated that he might include Dixon Witbeen in defence, which will certainly be a baptism of fire for the lanky Tigers defender.

Mohammed Ouseb will have a huge task on his shoulders to marshall the defence, but he proved with a superb display against Morocco that he is up to the task.

The team will need Ouseb's composure at the back, while a lot will also be expected from the other "seniors" in the team like George Hummel, Hindjou, Goraseb, Benjamin and Jacobs.

It is however imperative that some of the new members in the team assert themselves and rise to the occasion, because a huge team effort will be needed to beat Algeria in front of their fanatical supporters.

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