Conquer Comoros

Today’s 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying tie on the island of Comoros could be an extremely significant one for Uganda Cranes. And it has nothing to do with it being a game of equals. Cranes don’t belong to the first tier of African giants – a bracket that has Ghana, Ivory Coast, Algeria, and even faded Egyptian ‘Pharaohs’.

Squeezing Uganda into the second tier that has Senegal, Guinea, Mali and Zambia among others, could also be stretching it, but at least Cranes are on the fringes and sit comfortably in the third tier. Comoros, perhaps, belong nowhere. Had the qualifying format not been changed for this particular campaign, the islanders would probably not been in this group stage. They are normally knocked out during the preliminary round which is the lowest echelon of qualification for major tournaments.

In fact, they are winless in their last 18 matches. On the other hand, Cranes have often missed out on qualification in recent times by thin margins.

The Fifa rankings (for those who find them definitive and important) place Uganda at 71st while Comoros languish at 190. Maximum points would give Cranes a massive push in upstaging group D favourites Burkina Faso for the single automatic slot.
Coach Milutin Sredjovic and his lead striker Geoffrey Massa ought to pay a lot of attention to games like this. In a classic case of ‘once bitten twice shy’, Uganda, chasing a first Nations Cup appearance since 1978, can look back on that game against Lesotho in Maseru.

Lesotho, minnows of a group that also had Nigeria and Niger, were meant to be the whipping boys. Comoros should be that to Uganda, Botswana and the Burkina Faso, not so?
When a wasteful Cranes drew goalless in Maseru, they were playing catch up from then on. A lesson taken from there should hold them in good stead for today’s game.