Chan: Cranes dare Leopards 

There will be plenty of subplots as Uganda Cranes meet the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Saturday’s Chan Group B opener, MARK NAMANYA & JOHN VIANNEY NSIMBE report.

When the Cranes open their 2022 Chan campaign against DR Congo’s Leopards in Annaba, Algeria, there will be a lot at play beyond Uganda lining up against its western neighbour.

First, it will be a showdown between two coaches who know each other quite well; Milutin Micho Sredojevic was the Cranes coach before Sebastien Desabre replaced him a couple of years ago. The Serb and the Frenchman, who enjoy a cordial relationship, will now be in opposing dugouts on Saturday with each one seeking to draw first blood in a crucial match.

The team which wins the opening match in tournament football usually has a 66 per cent chance of advancement, and the importance of Saturday evening’s clash cannot be stated enough for either manager.

And considering that Senegal and Ivory Coast are the next opponents for both Uganda and DRC, an early blow will be of utmost importance. Meanwhile, it was Desabre who, as Uganda Cranes coach, master-minded a 2-1 victory over DR Congo at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

That result helped Uganda advance to the second round of the tournament where the national team were dumped out 0-1 by Senegal. It is understood that Desabre had a hand in the players’ strike and few individuals in the federation rued his departure when he took up the job at Pyramids in Egypt.

However, the now Leopards coach will be plotting how to outsmart a Cranes side that has regularly qualified for Chan but has never made an impression at the competition. That includes when he was in charge, back in 2018, in Morocco. Desabre did not do better than his predecessors, Bobby Williamson in 2011 and Micho in 2014 and 2016. Even his successor Johnny McKinstry came short in the 2020 edition.

As such, Micho would love the narrative of becoming the first coach to lead a Uganda Cranes side into the knockout stages of the competition. But it is quite difficult to read into Uganda’s three build-up games which were played in Tunisia, where the team has been camping.

First, they played to a 2-2 draw with Sudan, before following it up with 1-1 and 0-0 draws against Cameroon and Mali respectively. Before the 2020 Chan tournament in Cameroon, The Cranes beat Zambia 2-0 and Niger 3-0. A one-all draw with Cameroon was the only blot in their build-up, yet in the main tournament, they could only muster one point in three group games.

Uganda’s three goals in the friendlies were scored by Karim Watambala, Ibrahim Orit and Moses Waiswa – all midfielders. While this is a positive, the fact that the strikers did not figure on the score-sheet over 270 minutes is a concern.

It is not a public secret that Uganda Cranes have regularly struggled to score goals at competitions of a significant magnitude, and 2022 Chan will be a test of whether the strikers at Micho’s disposal have built the temperament to bury chances against sides of the quality of DRC, Senegal and Ivory Coast.

The Chan tournament is nominally supposed to be a developmental competition with home-based footballers being granted a chance to showcase their potential at continental level.

Most of The Cranes players in Algeria will be hoping to use the Chan to press their claims for a place in the senior Ugandan team considering that Fufa’s goal is to build a team that can reach the 2026 Fifa World Cup where Africa has been guaranteed nine slots.

Uganda’s Chan squad: Nafian Alionzi (URA), Ashiraf Mandela (Vipers), Isa Mubiru (Vipers), Gift Fred (SC Villa), Hillary Mukundane (Vipers), Marvin Youngman (Vipers), Najib Yiga (Vipers), Titus Ssematimba (Wakiso Giants), Nelson Ssenkatuka (Bright Stars), Travis Mutyaba (SC Villa), Moses Aliro (Wakiso Giants), Jack Komakech (Vipers), Joel Mutakubwa (Gaddafi), James Begisa (URA), Derrick Ndahiro (URA), Kenneth Ssemakula (SC Villa), Geoffrey Wasswa (KCCA), Siraje Ssentamu (Vipers), Karim Watambala (Vipers), Bright Anukani (Vipers), Moses Waiswa (KCCA), Frank Ssebufu (Wakiso Giants), Ibrahim Orit (Vipers), Rogers Mato (KCCA), Milton Karisa (Vipers).

Fixtures

• Fri, Jan 13@10pm: Algeria v Libya
• Sat, Jan 14@4pm: Ethiopia v Mozambique

• Sat, Jan 14@7pm: DR Congo v Uganda
• Sat, Jan 14@10pm: Ivory Coast v Senegal

• Sun, Jan 15@7pm: Morocco v Sudan
• Sun, Jan 15@10pm: Madagascar v Ghana

• Mon, Jan 16@7pm: Mali v Angola
• Mon, Jan 16@10pm: Cameroon v Congo

• Tue, Jan 17@7pm: Mozambique v Libya
• Tue, Jan 17@10pm: Algeria v Ethiopia