Monday, February 20, 2023
Uganda vs Central African Republic
Venue: Suez Canal Authority stadium, Ismailia
Kickoff Time: 5 PM (EAT)
The 2023 AFCON U20 kicked off on Sunday with hosts Egypt managing a goalless draw against Mozambique. In another encounter on the day, Senegal beat Nigeria 1-0.
Last edition’s finalist Uganda Hippos will start their campaign this evening against Central African Republic.
The fixture is the opener of Group B games, which also include South Sudan and Congo.
The Hippos will be aiming at nothing but starting on a high note. Prior to this game, the Hippos played a total of eight friendly matches, seven in Uganda and one in Egypt, against hosts Egypt, winning six, losing one, and one draw.
Jackson Mayanja, the Hippos Head Coach is hopeful that the technical team has done everything and everyone is ready for duty.
“Since my first day with this amazing team, the intention has been clear, and that is to qualify the team for the World Cup and everything must start against Central African Republic,” Mayanja said.
Similarly, the Hippos captain Isma Mugulusi, who plays in Greece believes that their chance to achieve the ultimate dream of qualifying for the U20 World Cup that will be held in Indonesia between May-June 2023 starts today and they are ready to kick it off on the high.
“We are happy and in good mood as players. We are thinking about nothing but this tournament and the first game against Central African Republic is very important to us if we are to achieve our mission of going to the World Cup.” Mugulusi said.
Meanwhile, the Central African Republic, which made it to the quarterfinals in the last edition, is ready to improve on its performance this year.
Their head coach Les Fauves coach Sebastien Ngato said, “Before coming we prepared the team in Morocco and we’re ready for the competition. Our target is to go to the semi-final, and we hope to achieve more than the last tournament in Mauritania.”
It should be noted that the teams that reach the semifinal stage represent Africa in the World Cup.
How to watch
The match will be live on UBC, Sanyuka Prime, and FUFA TV in Uganda.