Uganda’s National women’s team, the Crested Cranes will today afternoon once again battle their rivals Rwanda in a must-win return leg of the preliminary round of the 2024 Paris 2024 Olympic qualifiers.
Uganda which hosted the first leg at the same Kigali Pele Stadium few days ago since they have no approved stadium back home will enter the clash at a disadvantage since they failed to capitalize on their early lead in the first leg which ended in a 3-3 draw.
The Crested Cranes will be eager to rectify the defensive blunders committed in the firs leg especially by the center-backs. It is something that indeed scared the team’s assistant coach Ayubu Khalifa together with the chances his team missed throughout the entire game.
Kiyingi who is only assuming the assistant coach role because the team has no head coach since FUFA declared the position vacant will now work tirelessly to command his defense at least to avoid mistakes that cost the team.
Speaking ahead of the return leg, Kiyingi sounded confident that they have used the last few days to clear the defensive errors and prepare the team for the do-or-die affair.
To progress to the next round of the Women’s Olympic Qualifiers, Uganda will now need to secure a win or, at the very least, a draw of more than three goals that will take them to the next round.
The team that emerges victorious will eventually advance to the next round and will be matched up against Cameroon which received a bye in the first preliminary round after being one of the seven top-seeded nations.
