adminJOHANNESBURG. — The momentum for the 2014 Orange African Nations Championship is gradually building up with the arrival of seven teams for the tournament. The seven are DR Congo, Zimbabwe, Gabon, Libya, Mali, Mozambique and Mauritania; with the others expected before the opener on Saturday in Cape Town.
The Congolese, winners of the maiden edition of the tournament designed exclusively for footballers playing in their domestic leagues in 2009 in Cote d’Ivoire, were the first team to touch down, arriving in Johannesburg on December 29 last year.
This was to afford Santos Mutumbile and his charges ample time to acclimatise and fine-tune for the championship fixed for 11 January to 1 February.
Veteran goalkeeper Robert Kidiaba and defender Joel Kimwaki are the only players in the Congolese squad to have played at the last two editions of the tournament, 2009 and 2011 in Cote d’Ivoire and Sudan.
Kinshasa-based AS Vita Club is the most represented with seven players whilst arch-rivals Mazembe have six players in the final squad.
The Leopards are housed in Group D alongside Burundi, Gabon and Mauritania for the championships.
Next to arrive were Libya, touching down on January 3 before Gabon, Mali and Mauritania joined later the same day.
A delegation from the Local Organising Committee was at the airport to officially welcome the teams before transporting them to their respective venues.
Hosts Bafana Bafana have also landed in Cape Town ahead of the opener against Mozambique.
Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Nigeria are expected to arrive today.
Ghana, losing finalists in the maiden edition arrived on Sunday, via Windhoek, Namibia, where they held a training camp.
Ghana, Zimbabwe and the DR Congo remain the only ones to have qualified for every edition of the biennial tournament thus far.
The Atlas Lions of Morocco confirmed they would arrive yesterday for their maiden participation in the CHAN tournament, with Uganda touching base three days later.
The last teams to arrive will be Burundi and Congo, on the eve of the official opening of the tournament.
The tournament will take place in three cities, Cape Town, Mangaung and Polokwane, with the final billed for Saturday, February 1, 2014 in Cape Town. — Cafonline
Online Reporter