Uganda Cranes striker and captain, Emmanuel Okwi, will miss the Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Niger due to injury.
This was confirmed by Cranes Coach Micho after a practice match against SC Villa that ended in a 1-1 draw.
While Okwi has failed to score a single goal in the ongoing campaign despite starting all the games, his contribution in coordinating attacks and assuming various forward positions, has been instrumental for his teammates’ goal-scoring opportunities.
In their friendly against SC Villa at Wankulukuku Stadium, Kitara FC’s new signing Denis Omedi opened the scoring for the Cranes after coming off the bench in the second half before a Kenneth Semakula own goal got the Jogoos back in the game.
While Micho acknowledged the friendly as a platform for self-assessment, he did not shy away from expressing his concerns about the Cranes’ ongoing struggle to score goals.
With five games already played, the Cranes stand at a negative of three goals since they have only scored three goals and conceded six.
With the absence of Okwi Uganda Cranes’ hopes are on Fahad Bayo, Milton Karisa, Richard Basangwa, and a currently out-of-form Faruku Miya.
Commenting on the worrying state of the Cranes’ goal drought, Micho jokingly said that the Cranes players will have to resurrect the legendary Majid Musisi to be able to overcome before adding that they will have to rely on the available options to overcome Niger.
The Cranes face Niger who have nothing to lose since even a win cannot take them to AFCON.
The burden of qualification, therefore, rests solely on the Cranes’ shoulders, compelling them to unleash their full potential and seize victory from Niger.
The Uganda Cranes now find themselves on the verge of missing out on a consecutive appearance at the prestigious AFCON tournament. Currently occupying the third position in the standings with four points, they face stiff competition from Tanzania, who hold the second qualifying position with seven points.
With only one game left in the ongoing AFCON qualification campaign, Uganda will have to defeat Niger with a slightly more substantial goal margin as they also hope that Algeria defeats Tanzania by an even larger goal margin.
Group F Standings
Algeria – 15 points (Qualified)
Tanzania – 7 points
Uganda – 4 points
Niger – 2 points (eliminated)
