Tucak doubts level of pros

2010 World/Africa Cup qualifiersGroup CMar 28Rwanda v AlgeriaMar 29Egypt v Zambia Amavubi Stars head coach Branko Tucak stirred controversy on Friday by taking a swipe at his supposed-to-be star players, five days before Rwanda host Algeria in the opening 2010 World/Africa Cup qualifier. The Croat admitted that he spends sleepless night every time he thinks about the quality of his professional players.“Our best players (professional) are finding it difficult to win first team places in their respective clubs abroad and this a major concern to me. “Players like Ndikumana (Hamadi), (Aboubakar) Saddou are playing regularly in the clubs while the rest like (Olivier) Karekezi, Bobo Bola, Abedi (Saidi) and Mulisa (Jimmy) are struggling to win first team places at club level,” Tucak acknowledged. He added, “Under such circumstances, we need to have them with us earlier enough so that we could access their level of performance and also to see if they can fit into our plans for the Algeria game.” Tucak, 56 also hinted that the professional players, just like their home-based colleagues should not expect to walk into the team. He insisted that each player must work for his place on the team. Despite his contentious admission, Tucak remains optimistic about Amavubi’s chances of overcoming the Desert Fox on Saturday, a win that will set the tone for the remaining part of the campaign. Amavubi skipper Karekezi joined Said Abedi in Amavubi camp over the weekend while Bobo Bola (Sweden), Saddou (Al Ahly Tripoli), Mulisa (Beveren), Henry Munyaneza (Germinal Beerschot) and Ndikumana(AC Omonio) are expected to join camp today. In a related development, Atraco defender Aloua Gaseruka and Rayon Sport midfielder Jamal Mwiseneza have pulled out of camp with bouts of malaria. No replacements for the pair have been made and Tucak says he finds no reason to get replacements as he claims to have enough players already in the camp. Rwanda is drawn alongside Algeria, Egypt and Zambia in Group C of the 2010 World Cup qualifiers. Having failed to qualify for the last two Nations Cup finals, Rwanda must finish inside the top three to qualify for the next edition in Angola. Ends

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Tucak doubts level of pros