This week's society column has collected comments of different football fans and sport families' view on Ethiopia 's football performance and its accession to the coming 2008 Cup of African Nations….

Enjoy the samplings.

Do you think that Ethiopia will make it to the 2008 Cup of African Nations?

Though it's hard to predict the probability of Ethiopia in passing for the 2008 Cup of

Nations is very unluckily because Congo is in the same category, and recent records show that Congo is one of the best teams. Plus their trainer has a good reputation in leading the Cameroon team to victory. When we come to Ethiopia the premier league games are not well played; plus there has been change of trainers now and then and most of the players in the team come from the same club.

Behayelu Bereket, Football fan

Ethiopia 's position can be determined after the next game, which is going to be held in four months time in Congo . Congo seems to be in a very good position in terms of goals.

If they win the next game, it will create a huge gap for us.

Husen Abedeulkeni, manager for inter sport newspaper and magazine

It is often said that ‘if they [the players] have a good physiological preparation they can win.' I don't know why they always come up with this comment; Physiological preparation is not something that you feed the players in the training ground. It emanates from

frequently attending football games, and in having players that have the knowledge of good techniques and tactics.

Mekbib Tefera, Football Fan

Of course, why not? We always like to be fault finders instead of helping out our team with moral and other support. May God Help us!

Girma Zerihun, Addis Ababa

Football is a win and defeat game; so I will say a good trainer and flexibility among players will lead to a better result.

Alex Peter Al-Haji, Addis Ababa

Will CAN elude Ethiopia again?

By Mina Yirga

The last time Ethiopia took part in the Cup of African Nations (CAN) was over 30 years ago and since then, making it to the finals has become more of a dream than reality.

Ethiopian soccer performance has shown steady decline over the years, accounting for the country's lack of appearance in the CAN.

Ethiopia might brag that it has won the cup, but that was at a time when there was no stiff soccer players and the tournament entertained not more than half a dozen teams. Since then, Ethiopia has remained a good observer of the game instead of participating.

This time doesn't seem any different as there are no signs to make us believe otherwise. Our team won a lucky game against Libya and lost to a not so good Namibia , positioning itself third in a group that count Libya , Namibia and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). DRC is a central African soccer power and to think that Ethiopia will beat the Simbas to go top of the group would be wishful thinking, not to mention that they have to play Libya away from home. To begin with, the method of selecting players was very lame. We see a bunch of incompetent players in the starting line up with able and seasoned players sitting on the bench.

And of course there is the matter of appointing a coach. The Ethiopian national team has a string of oldie coaches who have taken and retaken the hot seat again and have brought nothing but inconsistent ways of playing.

The current coach is no different as he is one of the dinosaur breeds of coaches and with the Ethiopian Football Federation (EFF) having the chance to appoint an experienced but young coach, has opted to go back to the dark ages and look for a man that would drive the Ethiopian team to its usual mediocrity.

It would be really hard to say that the Ethiopian national team would make it to the 2008 CAN finals to be held in Ghana , because with the DRC leading the group and Libya just getting started, the Ethiopians simply do not have the firepower to outgun both the Simbas and the Desert Warriors.