The former player and coach of Simba, Abdallah Kibadeni, has asked members and fans of Simba to respect the decisions of the Head Coach, Robertinho Oliveira, due to blaming him for not playing Zambian striker Patrick Phiri
Speaking in Dar es Salaam, Kibadeni, who holds the record for scoring three 'hat-trick' goals in the traditional 'dabi' match between Simba and Yanga, said the fans are wronging the coach because the act of forcing him to play is like interfering with him on his duties.
"The act of Simba members and fans to accuse him of not playing Phiri is like interfering with his duties, he is the one who sits with the players and knows who should play this match and who should wait to play when, this having to arrange a player by force is not exactly the same," said Kibadeni
Immediately after the Simba Day Festival, although he was introduced and seen waving to the fans in the list of 30 players, he did not play the match, which is a series of his absence from the field since last season while it is claimed that he has recovered from the injuries he was facing.
Kibadeni said no coach can leave a good player out or be assigned something to do because even he needs a win more than anyone and if the team loses, they are the ones who bear the blame.
"We coaches are the ones who take the blame when the team is closed, so no one wants to lose a match for putting a good player out, I think they should just be patient because what he is doing and seeing is right for him at the moment and I think Simba has many competitions and there is no player who will be able to play all those matches. I know he will just play, don't be in a hurry," said Kibaden
Members and fans of the club despite attacking the coach on social media, some of them have claimed that the coach may be under pressure from some officials.
Until now, none of Simba's leaders, nor the Information and Communication Manager, Ahmed Ally, wanted to talk about the issue although on his Instagram account, some fans have written to him that if there is a problem with the player, they should solve it very quickly because it does not bring an image good at the club.
Despite facing injuries, last season Phiri was the player involved in the most goals in the Simba club
He was involved in 22 goals from 26 matches in all competitions. He scored 10 goals in the Premier League, five goals in the Champions League and four goals in the Community Shield, also providing 3 assists.
