Madagascar national team players: Photo Credit: Madagascar FA.
Madagascar coach Romuald Rakotondrabe says his side needs sound preparations to excel in Group B of the 2025 African Nations Championship (CHAN) finals, describing the opponents as strong.
Rakotondrabe said this in reaction to the Barea being drawn alongside one of the hosts, Tanzania, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, and the Central African Republic in the eighth CHAN edition.
“There are only strong teams. Tanzania is the host country. Burkina Faso eliminated Côte d'Ivoire in the qualifying round. We played a friendly match against Mauritania in Morocco. Their coach is also the head of the teams in the CAN and World Cup qualifiers. The task will not be easy,” he told L'Express newspaper.
The Barea coach described the postponement of CHAN as a blessing in disguise. “Everything depends on the preparations. The postponement of the final phase will, fortunately, allow us to prepare the players well and find other reinforcements,” he added.
CHAN was supposed to get underway from February 1 to 28 but the Confederation of African Football postponed it until this August to allow the host countries, Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya finalise preparations.
The Barea qualified for the CHAN finals courtesy of goal aggregate despite losing 0-1 to Eswatini in the second round, second leg match at the Côte d'Or stadium in Mauritius last month.
The islanders had won the second round, first leg match 2-0 at Lucas Moripe Stadium in South Africa on December 21, 2024. Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda will host the CHAN finals, a competition restricted to home domestic league players, from February 1 to 28 2025.
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