Don’t lose to Tanzania, Museveni tells Cranes

Stamina. President Museveni juggles the ball used during the Uganda Cranes vs Cape Verde match on Monday evening at State House, Entebbe when a group of National team players and Fufa paid him visit. Fufa handed him the ball for keeps. Photo by John Batanudde.

What you need to know:

SOCCER. The Uganda-Tanzania match is of no consequence to Cranes who have already qualified and are guaranteed of table leadership. Sebastien Desabre’s side is also yet to concede a goal in these Afcon 2019 qualifiers.

Entebbe. President Yoweri Museveni has demanded a good result from a buoyant Uganda Cranes team in the final Group L match against Tanzania to be played in March, next year.

Museveni made the remarks on Monday night in a meeting with a small group of Uganda Cranes players and Fufa officials at State House in Entebbe.The national team players in attendance were skipper Denis Onyango, Faruku Miya, Joseph Ochaya and Bernard Muwanga with the rest of the squad in Nigeria for last night’s friendly.

“Do not lose to Tanzania,” he said. “As you very well know, Tanzania is also my country but please do not lose that match.”
The Uganda-Tanzania match is of no consequence to Cranes who have already qualified and are guaranteed of table leadership. Sebastien Desabre’s side is is also yet to concede a goal.

And for Tanzania to qualify, they must beat Uganda to book a ticket to Cameroon 2019.

Museveni has never hidden his admiration for Tanzania, a country where he lived and studied. And in the aftermath of the 0-0 stalemate in Kampala between Cranes and Taifa Stars in September, he noted that the result was good because “both countries are his homes.”

Fufa president Moses Magogo reiterated the federation’s appreciation for support from the government and highlighted how key interventions, like the chartered flight to Maseru, had gone a long way in securing the latest qualification.
“Uganda is the only country in the whole of Africa to have qualified without conceding a goal; an achievement which would not have been possible without government’s increased funding for the national team and the federation,” Magogo observed.

The Fufa President then handed Museveni the ‘Fufa Goal Award’ for his contribution to development of the game in Uganda. It is the highest honour in the hierarchy of football awards in the country.

Museveni broke the room in laughter when he demanded to know why the team wasn’t hitting ‘ennyanda’ (hard shot).
“I watched you in Gabon and didn’t see ennyanda. You must start aiming from far to get good results.”

It is at this point that Magogo told him that three of Uganda’s seven goals had been hard shots, all coming in the home and away wins against Lesotho.

Museveni lectured the small team of Cranes players on the key components “skill, stamina and teamwork”.

He later on requested to have an exclusive word with the four Cranes players. He reportedly told them that he would be instructing his team to wire bonuses to their accounts.

EXCLUSIVE MEETING
More money. He later on requested to have an exclusive word with the four Cranes players. He reportedly told them that he would be instructing his team to wire bonuses to their accounts.