Uganda will have their eyes on the quarters spot when they take on Congo Republic at the ongoing U20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Egypt on Thursday at 8 PM in one of the two Group B matches set to be played for the day at the Suez Canal Stadium in Ismailia, Egypt. Jackson Mayanja’s charges started off perfect with a 2-1 win over Central African Republic courtesy of goals from captain Isma Mugulusi and John Paul Dembe, and a win on Thursday will see them become the second team to book their spot in the last eight after Senegal did so on Wednesday.The Hippos finished runners-up to Ghana in the last edition of the competition held in Mauritania, and they will will want to puush for their maiden title in the tournament.##NAJAVA_MECA_7046444##Ahead of the match, Mayanja is upbeat that they are ready for the encounter, noting that they will approach it more seriously than they would a final.“We’re prepared to win to have an easy qualification to the next round. The Congo game as I said is going to be a very tough game, but I think we’re very prepared to make sure this is the game which can make us qualify to the next round. My team and the entire technical staff is looking at that game tomorrow and we’re going to handle that game as a very, very serious game more than even a final. Of course, like a team which is trying to qualify for the World Cup we are not going to sit back because I believe in attacking football and what we’re going to do. We want to go and attack Congo until the end, there is nothing to stay back. Modern game is an open game but most importantly tomorrow, we must put Congo in their backyard,” the coach stated in a pre-match interview as per CAFonline.Exclusive: Wazito name new head coach, hand Nkata a different roleJust like Uganda, Congo picked a 2-1 win over South sudan and they will have their sight on the quarters as well.Coach Marie Joseph Madienguela has exuded confidence that his side is ready for the battle against the East African side for a direct place in the quarters.“We are ready, we’re facing a good team. Our players are very confident and they’re very direct with their play. This is a very serious match, and we are very focused on that. We’re very prepared to face Uganda. We hope to win the match against Uganda tomorrow. Our players are ready, we don’t have any injury worries going into tomorrow’s match and we’re in good conditions and they have been training very well,” Mandienguela said.##NAJAVA_MECA_7046415##In the other match for the day, South Sudan and Central African Republic earlier at the same venue with both teams seeking a win win to keep their hopes of progressing to the quarters alive.The two sides lost their opening matches in an identical manner, and the winner in the encounter could re-awaken progression hopes.Kenyan-based Paul Jawa made history for South Sudan when he scored the country’s first ever goal at the tournament to pull one back against Congo, with another player plying his club football in Kenya for Nairobi United Daniel Bichiok played the entire match, with new Sofapaka acqusition Jacob Addis watching proceedings from the bench.Rainbow FC Kenya’s striker Paul Jawa ‘Messi’ scored South Sudan’s only goal on their debut game at the U20 AFCON as they fell 2-1 to Congo Republic.📸 @RainbowFCKenya_ #TotalEnergiesAFCONU20 pic.twitter.com/isLX2axGmh— Murimi Njiru (@muriminjirujnr) February 20, 2023 South Sudan coach Peter James believes they have made all the necessary preparations to bsecure their first win.“Tomorrow’s game to me it’s a one-way game because we did all the necessary preparations to win tomorrow. All the matches we’re going to play will not be easy for us because all the teams are at the same level that’s why they qualified so we play all the matches as if it’s a final to us. Mistakes are part of the game. We correct our mistakes, and we try to perform and avoid them in the coming games,” he said on Wednesday.His counterpart Sebastien Ngato says the match against South Sudan’s Young Bright Stars is a decisive one.“It’s the second day after we lost the match against Uganda, but this is a very decisive match. The last match was a lesson for us – it was very hard, and we learned from it, and we’re going for a win against South Sudan. It’s going to be difficult, but we want to win, and we believe we will do it. We prepared well for the match. I know we lost the last match, but the preparations are good and it’s not an option to be ready, we must be ready,” Ngato noted.
