Semi final stage set in Addis Ababa

_{The TotalEnergies U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers for the CECAFA Zone enter the semi final stage this afternoon at the Abebe Bikila Stadium in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.}

_{Reigning Zonal champions Uganda Cubs will take to the field in the first semi final against Somalia.}

_{To reach the knock out stage Uganda dispatched Burundi 4-0 and followed it with a 4-1 victory against South Sudan, while Somalia shocked hosts Ethiopia 1-0, and went on to suffer a 2-1 defeat to Tanzania.}

_{Uganda will look to their leading scorer Arafat Nkoola and Alex Yiga who have netted three and two goals respectively, while Somalia hope that Abdihafid Mohamed and Idris Mohamed continue to find their scoring form.}

_{Humuza Lutalo, the Uganda Cubs head coach told Cecafaonline that his players are determined to go past the semi final stage. “We shall not underrate the Somalia team, but make sure we play according to our plan to win the match and qualify for the final,” added Lutalo.}

_{The Somalia coach Nur Mohamed Amin said although they respect the Ugandan team, his team is prepared to give their best on the pitch.}

_{Tanzania will face South Sudan in the second semi final encounter. Sylvester Otto, the leading tournament scorer with four goals will lead the Tanzanian attack as they hope to register their third straight win in the tournament.}

_{Coach Kim Poulsen’s team kick started the tournament with a hard fought 3-2 win against hosts Ethiopia, and went o to stop Somalia 2-1 in the last Group A match.}

_{But Poulsen thinks the semi final will be a very tough stage since a lot will be at stake. “These are young boys whose mental strength is still low. But I have prepared my players to put up a good show and be able to get the best result,” added Poulsen.}

_{The South Sudan head coach Bilal Felix Komoyangi said although they are the underdogs, his team is well prepared. “We know Tanzania is a strong team, but we are ready to face them,” added the coach.}

_{The two teams that qualify for the final will automatically book places to the U-17 AFCON 2023 to be hosted by Algeria.}