By Our Reporter
The Uganda Cranes will be aiming for maximum points when they face Kenya’s Harambee Stars at St. Mary’s stadium, Kitende this Thursday in a bid to keep their hopes for qualifying for their first ever World Cup finals alive.
The Cranes who are second in Group E with 8 points were previously held to a goalless draw when they faced the Harambee Stars in the first-leg that was played in Nairobi. They now must beat Kenya and Mali to reach the final play-off round of the road to Qatar 2022.
Although Cranes coach Sredojevic ‘Micho’ Milutin has expressed wary about the upcoming fixture, he says the team is well prepared. “We need to take every match as it is and we are now focusing on the game against Kenya. They will come with pride and ready to spoil the party like they have done before against the Cranes. We are preparing ourselves in the best way possible.” Micho told media.
Kenya are already out of the race to reach Qatar having managed only two points in their last four fixtures putting them 8 points behind Group E leaders, Mali, who stand at 10 points, thus will only be playing for bragging rights.
Commenting about the upcoming game, Henry Njoroge from Airtel Uganda, who are the official Sponsor of the Cranes, said, “After qualifying for AFCON twice, naturally you want to hit the next big thing, which in this case is the world cup. Airtel as the main sponsor is very keen on supporting the team to realize this dream.”
“Our win against Rwanda was huge because it gave us more hope. Now more than ever as we play Kenya today and Mali on Sunday, we need to collectively rally and support the boys from all over the country.” He added.
Uganda Cranes probable starting XI:
Charles Lukwago (GK), Bevis Mugabi, Timothy Denis Awany, Denis Iguma, Isaac Muleme, Khalid Aucho, Bobosi Byaruhanga, Moses Waiswa, Milton Karisa, Fahad Bayo and Steven Desse Mukwala.
The game will air live on UBC TV starting at 4pm.