The Uganda Cranes continued their unwanted trend of failing to reach the knockout stages of CHAN as they bowed out of the 2020 edition in Cameroon on Tuesday night.
Johnathan McKinstry’s side who had earlier drawn with Rwanda and also lost to Togo, were humbled by defending champions Morocco 5-2 at the Stade de la Reunification in Douala.
The Cranes took the lead on 27 minutes but two goals either side of halftime by Ayoub El Kaabi (penalty) and Sofiane Rahmi flipped the game into Morocco’s favour.
Hamza El Houssaoui added a third on 71 minutes before eventual man-of-the-match Rahim completed his brace with 10 minutes to play.
Saidi Kyeyune pulled one back for Uganda but substitute Abdelilah Hafidi washed away any hopes of a miraculous comeback with a fifth for the Atlas Lions, deep into additional time.
The result means Uganda finishes bottom of group C with just a single point while Morocco storm the last 8 as (Group C) leaders with 7 points from three games.
Rwanda joins the 2018 winners in the knockout stages after coming from a goal down to beat Togo 3-2 in the other day’s game, to finish second with 5 points.
Uganda have now been eliminated at the group stage in all five of their CHAN tournament appearances.
Here is how the Uganda Cranes rated on Tuesday;
Charles Lukwago 5.0
He rates average because he conceded five goals but he once again made several outstanding saves on the day. Lukwago is the reason as to why Morocco did not score eight or nine goals. The KCCA FC show-stopper was unlucky to score an own-goal for the Atlas Lions’ fifth. Without a doubt, Lukwago has been arguably the best performer for Uganda at this year’s championships.
Denis Iguma 2.0
Yet another disappointing display by the experienced defender. Iguma was at fault for both the third and fourth goals as he casually gave away possession. The right-back was as poor as they get in a game of football.
Aziz Kayondo 3.0
After making a slight improvement in the loss to Togo, Kayondo was once again one of the poorest performers on Tuesday. His slip was vital in the build up to Morocco’s second goal.
Mustafa Mujuzi 4.0
Mujuzi had had two good displays against Rwanda and Togo but was always a second-late on Tuesday as he could barely get to the Morocco forwards. Handled the ball to concede the penalty that levelled matters deep into first-half added on time.
Halid Lwaliwa 3.5
The team captain was handed his first start on Tuesday but failed to inspire both the defence and Cranes to a decent performance. Many will argue that Patrick Mbowa who started the first two games should have probably been maintained at centre-half.
Shafick Kagimu 4.5
Kagimu has been average throughout the tournament and was once again at it on Tuesday as he was in and out of the game. Clearly, he is not the deep laying playmaker McKinstry desires.
Bright Anukani 4.0
Once again, the youthful playmaker had a miserable outing as he failed to create-enough for the forwards to feed on. Was substituted for Watambala as the game neared its end.
Saidi Kyeyune 5.5
Rewarded for his goal against Togo, with a first start in the competition. Kyeyune rifled in Uganda’s second goal on the day from a direct free kick but it came too late as the contest had already been lost.
Ibrahim Orit 5.0
Orit blew hot and cold on the day as he occasionally looked good but then unnecessarily lost the ball down the right. The Vipers winger looked like Uganda’s best shot to a fight back all night and scored the opening goal of the seven-goal thriller.
Vianne Ssekajugo 3.0
Ssekajugo was another disappointment once again and looked pedestrian throughout the night. It still baffles me as to why he played the entire 90 minutes.
Brian Aheebwa 3.0
Aheebwa was a surprise exclusion from the starting team in the first two games but did little to suggest McKinstry made a mistake in both the draw against Rwanda and the loss to Togo as he barely made any sort of impact upfront. Was taken off with 35 minutes to play.
Substitutes
Shaban Muhammad 4.0
Shaban was full of energy after replacing Aheebwa on 55 minutes. His tenacity saw him fouled for a free kick that Kyeyune scored inside the last 10 minutes.
Joackim Ojera 3.0
Came on for Mujuzi on 73 minutes as Uganda attempted to make a miraculous come back but aside from a few runs down the channel, could not inspire a side that looked already hapless.
Karim Watambala N.A
Replaced Anukani late in the contest and barely touched the ball.
