While their traditional rivals Simba have travelled to South Africa to prepare for the Kariakoo Derby scheduled for October 10, Mainland Tanzania champions Yanga have no plans to leave the country and are expected to continue their preparations at Avic Town.
After the league was suspended, Yanga players were given a nine-day break and are expected to return to training on Monday to begin preparations for the derby as well as their other upcoming matches.
In recent seasons, Yanga have moved away from the practice of travelling abroad or even leaving Dar es Salaam for pre-season preparations, instead basing themselves at Avic Town.
In four of the five seasons in which Yanga have won the league title consecutively, Wananchi have conducted their pre-season preparations at Avic Town and have not changed that approach even when facing their traditional rivals.
During that period, Yanga have lost only one league match against Simba, on April 16, 2023, meaning more than three years have now passed since their last league defeat to Simba.
Yanga Head of Information and Communications Ali Kamwe has stressed that the squad will prepare as usual and said they are highly confident of winning the match against Simba.
It is worth noting that Yanga and Simba met in Zanzibar in the opening match of the season in the Community Shield, with Yanga securing a 1-0 victory.
Heading into that match, Wananchi had also prepared at Avic Town, while their rivals had travelled from Rwanda, where they participated in the CECAFA Kagame Cup and conducted their pre-season preparations.
