Ethiopia Walia Ibex depart for Algeria 2017 Afcon clash

Ethiopia Walia Ibex will fly tonight(Monday) to Algeria where they are expected to play the Dessert Foxes on Friday in Blinda.

The travelling party with be joined by St.George players who land at 8pm at the Bole International airport when they will arrive from Lubumbashi where they lost 1-0 to TP Mazembe in a CAF Champions league game before the entire team travels at 10.45pm.

The team will be without influential defender Walid Atta after the debacle in which the federation sent the release letter to his former club in Turkey making him time barred.

Also missing from the squad will be striker Salhadin Said who requested to be left out of the team so as to regain his form after moving back to St.George from Algeria.

Walia’s coach Yoahnnes Sahle intimated to Soka25east.com that he was optimistic of a good outing though he acknowledged his opponents pedigree in Africa

“We have a tough outing in Algeria facing one of the best teams with top quality players.We have not played any build up friendly but we just hope for the best as we start away from home I have urged my players to give 100 percent”

Sahle has also summoned forward Getaneh Kebede and playmaker Shemeles Bekele in the squad dominated by members of the Walias squad that participated at the recent African Nations Championship in Rwanda, failing to go past the group stage.

Dedebit duo Dawit Fikadu, Tarike Getnet and Sidama Coffee custodian Lealem Birhanu make their return after recovering from injuries.

Algeria sits at the summit of the group with the maximum six points from two games, two points richer than Ethiopia. Seychelles and Lesotho follow in that order with a point and no point.

Full squad

Goalkeepers: Abele Mamo (Mugher Cement), Lealem Birhanu (Sidama Coffee), Tarike Getenet (Dedebit)

Defenders: Seyoum Tesfaye (Dedebit), Alula Girma (Saint George), Tekalegn Dejene (Dedebit), Souliman Mohammed (Adama City), Asechalew Tamene (Saint George), Anteneh Tesfaye (Sidama Coffee), Yared Bayeh (Dashen Beer),Wendifraw Getahun (Ethiopian Coffee)

Midfielders: Gatoch Panom (Ethiopian Coffee), Asrat Megeressa (Dashen Beer), Biniam Belay (Commercial Bank of Ethiopia), Tadele Mengesha (ArbaMinch City), Behailu Assefa (Saint George), Shemeles Bekele (Petrojet, Egypt), Elias Mamo (Ethiopian Coffee),  Ramkel Lok (Saint George)

Forwards: Dawit Fikadu (Dedebit), Getaneh Kebede (University of Pretoria, South Africa), Tafesse Tesfaye (Adama City), Mulualem Tilahun (Defence Force) Salahdin Said (Saint George)

Source: soka25east.com