It is, however, in the CAF Champions League where the final judgement on the club's investor Mohamed Dewji's reign will likely be made.
Last season's embarrassing preliminary round exit to unfancied Mozambican opponents, UD Songo underlined just how far Simba are still down in the African club football pecking order.
The Camp Simba attack was a pre-dawn attack at Manda Air Strip on Camp Simba on 5 January 2020. The camp is used by Kenyan and U.S. Troops and is located near Manda Bay on the mainland of Lamu County, Kenya. The perpetrators were al-Shabaab, a Somali -based Islamist terrorist group. SIMBA is located in Stavanger—a city on the western coast of Norway—which for more than 170 years has hosted an institution that has focused on Africa and African Christianity, in recent years also on African theology and biblical interpretation: School of Mission and Theology, now part of.
The early and unexpected exit came a season after they had unexpectedly progressed to the quarterfinal stage of the lucrative CAF Champions League.
In a group comprising two African elites, Egypt's Al Ahly and AS Vita Club of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Simba were given a footballing lesson across two away ties, losing 5-0 to both AS Vita Club and Al Ahly.
Lessons have been learnt. Simba have since spent big to ensure that they would become a force in African club football before establishing themselves among Africa's elite.
For Africa's elites, Champions League group stage is a footnote, the bare minimum expected is always quarterfinals. That is a stage Simba want to reach.
The club has repeatedly been saying the Champions League's semi-final is their main target.
It is easy to dismiss that as being too ambitious after all, they have only been past the last eight of the Champions League once since 1974, with their semi-final appearance in 1974 the first and last time they got even remotely close to lifting the trophy.
However, Simba have not been just politicking their Champions League ambitions, they have laid down the foundation needed.
They have spent more than they have as they look to progress to the semi-finals.
Much as they have been handed a tough draw alongside defending and all-time record champions, Al Ahly, AS Vita Club and Al Merreikh, Simba's coach Didier Gomes da Rosa is confident they are ready to compete with the big boys.
The French coach who replaced the departed Sven Vandenbroeck knows he cannot hide away from the expectations and the owner will demand success.
He explicitly said he is convinced Simba have assembled a squad that is up there with Africa’s elites.
He disclosed: “We need to be ready to fight. We have high hope in the Champions League. When we see Simba like this afternoon against one of the best teams in Africa it is very encouraging.'
'It is very good for the future. We are at the level to play in the group stage. I think I am confident this Simba team can reach the quarterfinals and go far in the competition.”
If Simba are to truly ready to compete with Africa's elite, they will likely have to come out of their shell come the group stage matches, though their ability to keep clean sheets at the other end does, at least, suggest that there will be no repeat of the Al Ahly and AS Vita Club debacle this term.
African Symbols
Improvements have been made at the back with the addition of Kenyan defender, Joash Ochieng, experienced Zimbabwean Peter Muduhwa, who will add to what Paschal Wawa, Kennedy Juma, Erasto Nyoni and Ame Ali offer on the table.
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Up front, the form of new arrivals, Junior Lokosa, Bernard Morrison and Chris Mugalu, coupled with the retention of John Bocco, Clatous Chama and Meddie Kagere, who were part of the Champions League squad in 2018, would be very important to determine qualification for the showpiece's quarterfinals...read more on https://epaper.ippmedia.com
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