NEWS
CECAFA U-23 Challenge Cup: What the coaches say after the group stage
The CECAFA U-23 Challenge Cup group stage climaxed on July 24th with nine matches played in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia. The coaches had this to say.
Kim Poulsen (Head Coach, Tanzania)
We are very happy to qualify for the semi finals because our preparations were close to zero since the Tanzania Premier League has just ended. We were also in a very tough group and we surely battled strongly to make it to the next stage.
I think Uganda also deserved to be in the semi final because they play well. We shall not underrate our opponents South Sudan who we face in the semi final. We shall have to approach the semi final match very differently.
Morley Byekwaso (Head Coach, Uganda)
I thank the boys because for the fighting spirit they have showed in the two matches. We created several scoring chances in this tournament, but did not use them well. But it’s a good experience for my young team as we still have two more classification matches.
We need to prepare our teams for the future and this tournament is good to try out players.
Julien Mette (Head Coach, Djibouti)
Ofcourse it is not good to see us failing to win or even score a single goal. But I am happy that the young players have got more exposure from the two matches we played against Kenya and South Sudan. It is from such matches that players get more experience and can be able to improve.
Simon James Yor (Head Coach, South Sudan)
Qualifying for the semi final is very good for my players because it means they have more competitive matches to play and this will help them to develop and become better players. We know the Tanzanian team that we face in the semi final is strong, but we shall prepare well for them.
Wubetu Abate Wubetu (head Coach, Ethiopia)
I am not happy with the way my players played the two group games where we picked draws. We need to improve as a team to take our chances and always shoot at goal instead of holding onto the ball and lack that final finish. But the tournament is good for testing and improving our young players.
Jimmy Ndayizeye (Head Coach, Burundi)
I am impressed with the concentration of my players and we hope they can keep focused for the game against Kenya. We have brought some of our young players from Europe to be tested in this tournament and am happy with the progress. Facing Kenya will not be easy because they have showed they are strong by winning their two games in the pool.
Jean Claude Loboko (Head Coach, DR Congo)
Although we failed to qualify for the semi finals, we are happy that the young players are getting the much needed experience from this tournament. Yes we have been good at creating many scoring chances, but finishing remains our problem.
Stanley Khayo Okumbi (Head Coach, Kenya)
Five goals and two wins makes us happy as the technical bench. But we need to tune out minds and prepare well ahead of the tough match against Burundi. Although we have won all our two games in the group stage, I believe we still have to improve on some aspects.
Yohannes Tesfay Giday (Assistant Coach, Eritrea)
Although we failed to win a single game in the group stage, this has been a good outing for the players. We shall try to field players who have not got a lot of playing time in the remaining two classification matches.
The head coach of Somalia’s U-17 team Mohamed Abdulkhadir Sheikhdon has promised that his team will continue fighting on in the remaining matches at the on-going TotalEnergies CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025.
Somalia suffered a 3 -0 defeat to Tunisia in their opening Group C match played at the Ben M’Hamed El Abdi Stadium, El Jadida in Morocco on Tuesday night.
But Sheikhdon has made it clear that most of his players were not used to the big stage in the opening match, but will re-group and improve in the next matches.
“We are determined to keep fighting in the remaining two Group matches because we know what we should do to be able to progress in the competition,” added the Somalia coach.
Somalia will next face The Gambia on April 4th in their second Group C match. The Gambia also suffered a 1-0 defeat to reigning champions Senegal in their opening match.
In Group A the other teams from the CECAFA Zone Uganda and Tanzania have all suffered defeats. Uganda Cubs suffered a 5-0 loss to hosts Morocco, while Tanzania lost 4-1 to Zambia.
The top 10 teams at the U-17 AFCON will ends on April 19th will qualify for the 2025 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar as the CAF representatives.
Tanzania have suffered a 4-1 defeat to Zambia in their first Group A match at the on-going TotalEnergies CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco.
After a defensive lapse by the Tanzanian team Jonathan Kalimina gave the Junior Chipolopolo the lead after only 8 minutes at the El Bachir Stadium, Mohammedia.
Captained by Kassim Juma Tanzania tried to re-organise themselves and started to create some chances up-front through Jabiri Farijala and Juma Abushiri.
But before the interval Abel Nyirongo made it 2-0 for Zambia after picking a good cross from Nthasilwe Malupande.
After the break Tanzania returned charged and determined to get some goals as they had Juma Sagwe’s shot saved.
But the highly passing Zambian side continued to push forward and Mike Mutale netted their third goal after 79 minutes. Sagwe finally pulled a goal back for Tanzania with a well-timed header that beat Zambia’s goalkeeper Rogers Simumba.
Substitute Gabriel Phiri increased Zambia’s lead with the clock ticking away.
Tanzania will return to action on Thursday with a match against fellow CECAFA side Uganda. The Uganda Cubs lost their opening Group A match 5-0 to hosts Morocco on Sunday night.
Sudan giants Al Hilal are set to face Egypt’s Al Ahly in the first leg of the 2024/2025 TotalEnergies CAF Champions League at the Cairo International Stadium on Tuesday night.
Florent Ibenge, the Al Hilal coach has made it clear that the first leg will be very important because it sets the ground for the return leg.
“We know that Al Ahly are a big team that has won several trophies on the continent, but we have tactically prepared and know how we must handle the match. This round is won over two legs and that is what we have prepared for,” says Ibenge.
Although Al Hilal have been disadvantaged to play all their home matches away from Khartoum because of the political instability back in Sudan, they have showed stability and only lost two matches in all 10 matches they have played in the initial stages going into the quarter final.
Al Hilal, the only team in the CECAFA Zone playing in the quarter final stage will look to skipper Muhamed Abdelrahman to lead the team in hunt for goals together with Adam Coulibaly and Burundian International Jean Claude Girumugisha.
To reach the quarter final stage Al Hilal ejected Al Ahly Benghazi (Libya) and San Pedro (Ivory Coast) in the first and second rounds respectively. They went on to top Group A that MC Alger (Algeria), Young Africans SC (Tanzania) and DR Congo’s TP Mazembe.
The other quarter final matches to be played on Tuesday include Pyramids facing AS FAR, Mamelodi Sundowns battling against Esperance de Tunis, and MC Alger taking on Orlando Pirates.
Uganda Cubs made a poor start in the TotalEnergies CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 falling 5-0 to hosts in a Group A match that ended on Sunday night.
Within the early 10 minutes the home side scored two goals through Ilies Belmoktar and Driss at the El Bachir Stadium, Mohammedia.
The AS Monaco striker punished the flat footed Ugandan defence after only 3 minutes, and Belmokhtar made it 2-0 off a corner five minutes later.
The CECAFA U-17 reigning champions tried to settle down, but failed to match Morocco’s midfield department. Ziyad Baha also got his name on the score sheet after 24 minutes after converting a penalty.
Uganda later conceded another after 32 minutes with Belmokhtar placing the ball between the legs of past goalkeeper Ashraf Lukyamuzi to make it 4-0.
After the interval Uganda made some changes, but Ziyad Baha netted his second of the night after 72 minutes. The Cubs tried to push forward, but failed to find the goals.
Action shifts to CECAFA’s second representatives Tanzania who face Zambia in another Group A match on Monday at the El Bachir Stadium, Mohammedia. On Tuesday Somalia will kick start their Group C campaign with a match against Tunisia.
The top 10 teams at the U-17 AFCON will ends on April 19th will qualify for the 2025 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar as the CAF representatives.
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