Heroes check Byekwaso credentials
Mbale Heroes gave the fans a lot to cheer about. PHOTO/COURTESY
What you need to know:
Mbale Heroes fresh from a dramatic 1-0 win over holders Villa on Sunday in Mbale have firmly announced their grand return to the big stage after 17 years against the most befitting opponent.
The Startimes Uganda Premier League title race is already heating up after only two match days with early surprises setting the tone for what promises to be a thrilling season.
Mbale Heroes fresh from a dramatic 1-0 win over holders Villa on Sunday in Mbale have firmly announced their grand return to the big stage after 17 years against the most befitting opponent.
Their coach Richard Malinga outshone his former mentor Morley Byekwaso in Mbale to send a strong message to opponents as they smiled to the bank with Shs17m collected from the gate receipts. The match also exposed weaknesses in Villa’s nest early in the season.
Malinga, who previously worked under Byekwaso at KCCA and Villa, loaded the midfield with five midfielders, successfully neutralizing Villa’s creatives and limiting their star man Jonah Kakande to ineffective runs down the flanks.
His side dominated but lacked the nerves in Villa’s box for most of the game. However, a late free kick by substitute Cosia Waiswa expertly squeezed through Braddy Wokorach’s near-angle and secured the three points.
“He is my coach too, so I know his tactics. That’s why we played exactly his game,” Malinga bragged after the win.
Byekwaso, on the other hand, likened the match to the Manchester City-Arsenal affair in the English Premier League that ended 2-2 later that day.
Unfortunately for him, Villa couldn’t find the rhythm to replicate neither Guardiola's tactics to equalise late and snatch a point nor their 4-2 opening day victory against Mbarara.
“I worked with him for six years and we’re like Guardiola and Arteta, so he knows my style and I expected this,” Byekwaso reflected.
“I had warned my players that it would be a tight game with few chances but we didn’t take ours and were punished. However, the league is a marathon and now shift to focus ahead,” he added.
The result leaves only Nec who face UPDF on Tuesday in Lugogo with a perfect record after match day two in what seems like early signs of a complicated title race.
StarTimes Uganda Premier League
Result
Mbale Heroes 1-0 Villa
Tuesday fixtures
Police vs. Bright Stars - Kavumba 4pm
Nec vs. UPDF – Lugogo, 7pm
