Mutebi backing rivals Villa to bounce back
Baptism of fire. SC Villa coach Basena is a man under pressure after a string of poor results with the Jogoos. Photo by John Batanudde
What you need to know:
- “So we are facing a team that also wants to prove something. Therefore we expect a good challenge from them.”
- For a club that started almost afresh after losing over 10 first team players from last campaign, Villa have hardly been played off the park.
Kampala. SC Villa and KCCA, Uganda’s two most successful clubs with 28 league titles between them, meet in the StarTimes Uganda Premier League (SUPL) today in the most unfamiliar of situations.
Never before have the two faced off - six matches into the season - with Villa having just three points from a possible 18 and in relegation zone.
But KCCA manager Mike Mutebi, whose team arrive at Namboole in third place with only two points behind leaders Vipers, is backing the Jogoos to bounce back from their current predicament.
Record winners
“We know Villa is one of the biggest clubs in the country, and they are record league winners (16 titles),” said Mutebi yesterday.
“So what they are going through is sad for Ugandan football but I believe they will overcome it.” So, is this the best time to face the record winners as they languish second from bottom?
“Every time is the best time for us,” added Mutebi, “They have problems but on the day, they can beat anyone. By the way they have not been playing badly. They are just sometimes lucky.
“So we are facing a team that also wants to prove something. Therefore we expect a good challenge from them.”
For a club that started almost afresh after losing over 10 first team players from last campaign, Villa have hardly been played off the park.
But it is the results that have just not manifested for coach Moses Basena’s collection.
However, Basena - who is already under the proverbial Villa fan pressure - insists they are on the right track and it is a matter of time before results start coming. Being competitive does not stop at only winning games,” Basena told Daily Monitor following Villa’s 2-1 defeat to Mbarara City at the weekend, “You also have to assess the games.
“We definitely have to improve and we shall improve, with time. It’s just two months.
We all know how the club was when I came in. We had to just pick players from all over the place, so we shouldn’t expect a miracle in two months. We all know we just have to continue working harder.”
KCCA will bank on their second half performance in the 1-1 draw with Vipers to try put Villa on the sword. Allan Okello remains KCCA’s fulcrum going forward, while Basena will hope his forwards in Joseph Semujju and skipper Ambrose Kirya finally come to the party in the must-win encounter.
Elsewhere, amidst the SC Villa versus KCCA hullabaloo, any of Bul and Bright Stars can go top of the table on a day leaders Vipers are not in action.
Both Bul and Bright Stars scored four times in their weekend victories over Ndejje University and Kirinya Jinja respectively, and will fancy their chances to go top when they face URA and Ndejje respectively today.
Today’s games
StarTimes Uganda Premier League
SC Villa vs KCCA
Bul vs URA
Ndejje University vs Bright Stars
Nyamityobora vs Kirinya Jinja
Tomorrow
Express vs Vipers SC
Police vs Tooro United
Maroons vs Onduparaka
Paidha Black Angels vs Mbarara City
Top scorers
Player Goals Club
Joel Madondo 6 Kirinya-Jinja
Nelson Senkatuka 5 Bright Stars
Dan Sserunkuma 4 Vipers
Daniel Shabena 3 BUL
Allan Kayiwa 3 Tooro Utd
Ibrahim Kayiwa 3 Express
Vianney Sekajugo 3 Onduparaka
SUPL TABLE
P W D L F A Ps
Vipers SC 6 4 2 0 10 5 14
Bul 6 4 1 1 11 4 13
KCCA 6 3 3 0 7 2 12
Bright Stars 6 3 2 1 10 6 11
Express 6 3 2 1 9 5 11
Onduparaka 6 3 2 1 6 2 11
Mbarara City 6 3 1 2 8 5 10
URA 6 2 4 0 4 1 10
Police 6 2 1 3 9 11 7
Ndejje Univ. 6 2 0 4 4 8 6
Kirinya Jinja 6 1 3 2 7 12 6
Tooro United 6 1 2 3 3 6 5
Ny’tyobora 6 1 1 4 5 9 4
Paidha B. A 6 1 1 4 3 10 4
SC Villa 6 0 3 3 4 8 3
Maroons 6 0 2 4 6 12 2
