AFCON U20 Final, Saturday, March 6 | Ghana vs. Uganda – 11:00pm, EAT
The Uganda Cranes U20 Football team will look to make history today as they take on the Black Satelites of Ghana in the AFCON U20 Final encounter in Nouakchott, Mauritania.
The Hippos, who are newbies and tournament first timers are the only second time that a Ugandan national football team will be playing a continental final the first being the Uganda Cranes taking on Ghana still in the 1978 AFCON Final.
The Hippos have had a fairy-tale at the U20 Africa Cup of Nations on the country’s first appearance at the championship.
“It has been a long journey to the final. We have gone through many challenges but we remained strong and victorious,” Head Coach Morley Byekwaso said in the pre-match press conference.
Byekwaso believes it is time for Hippos to accomplish the mission by winning the trophy and says the team is not under any pressure facing three-time winners of the competition.
“Calmness is the key to our victories since the beginning and we have no pressure. We shall only be fighting to become champions.
“Ghana is good but we believe in ourselves and ready to challenge them. Like we have been playing in the previous games, we shall bring out what we are best at doing naturally.
“We expect a very tough match but it is for us to accomplish our mission by winning the trophy.”
Byekwaso could field the same team that faced Tunisia with the exception of Najib Yiga who was stretch off during the second of the semifinal against Tunisia.
The back line has been self-selected and unchanged throughout the tournament, but changes have been made in midfield and attack.
Uganda Hippos Journey to the Final
Group Stage
- Uganda 2-0 Mozambique
- Cameroon 1-0 Uganda
- Mauritania 1-2 Uganda
Quarterfinals
- Uganda 0(5)-0(3) Burkina Faso.
Semifinals
- Uganda 4-1 Tunisia
Do you have a story or an opinion to share? Email us on: [email protected] Or join the Daily Express WhatsApp channel for all the latest news and trends or join the Telegram Channel for the latest updates.
