ZONAL AFCON U-17 QUALIFIERS: Can Ethiopia stop high flying Uganda Cubs?

Ethiopia will battle Uganda Cubs in the last group A game at the on-going Zonal Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) U-17 qualifiers in Rwanda this afternoon.

Although Uganda has already qualified for the semi-final stage after their 5-0 win against Kenya, the biggest question remains whether Ethiopia can stop the high flying Cubs.

But Ethiopia’s coach Endrias Berhanu Woldamanuel has warned that Uganda should not expect an easy run at the Umuganda Stadium.

“We need a good result to be able to qualify for the semi-final and Uganda should expect a very tough challenge. I watched them beat Kenya 5-0 and I know what to expect and how to counter their threat,” added the coach.

Woldamanuel made it clear that they will not give the Ugandan team lots of space to play the kind of game they prefer.

Ethiopia who drew with Kenya 2-2 in their first game can qualify for the knock out stage if they earn a draw or suffer defeat by less than 5 goals. At the Afcon U-17 qualifier in 2018 Ethiopia beat Uganda 1-0 in the group stage before Uganda won 3-1 in the final.

Uganda’s coach Hamuza Lutalo however maintained that they are taking every game seriously and their mission is to win every game in the tournament. “We shall not underrate any team,” added Lutalo.

The semi-finals of the competition will be played on Sunday, while the play-off for third place and the final take place on December 22^nd. The best two teams will qualify for the Afcon U-17 to take place in March next year in Morocco.

Group A standing                  

                      P      W    D       L     F    A    Pts

Uganda       1      1     0     0     5    0   5    3

Ethiopia     1      0      1     0    2    2    0    1

Kenya          2     0      1     1     2    7   -5    1