Monitor Online | Sport | Swedish-born star for Uganda Cranes

Kampala

Uganda’s strikers problems will be hugely lessened if local soccer body Fufa move fast to woo AIK Stockholm’s forward Martin Kayongo Mutumba into the national team.

The Swedish-born Ugandan has already expressed his desire to play for his country of descent leaving the onus to Fufa to court him. “It would be nice and big as well because my mom and dad are from there,” he told a Swedish sports paper, Sportbladet.

And Cranes coach Bobby Williamson has welcomed the news and underlined his interest in the prospect.

“I met with the technical director Asuman Lubowa today (yesterday) and that issue came up,” said Williamson. “I’ll forward the matter to the Fufa president so that they arrange my travel to Sweden to watch the boy play. Of course not for Cecafa (in Nairobi) but if all is fine, he’ll definitely be part of my plans in the near future.”

Mutumba’s form has been terrific in the domestic league in Sweden and he set up one of the goals as AIK beat IFK Gothenburg 2-1 on Sunday to clinch their first Swedish title since 1998.

The 24-year-old is eligible to play after the 1995 Constitution was amended in 2005 to allow dual citizenship and he hasn’t represented Sweden at senior level.