Uganda Cranes fell to Mozambique 3-1 in a 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifying match played at Cairo International stadium, Egypt on Thursday.
Muhammad Shaban scored the lone goal for Uganda with Pedro Santos alias Pepo getting a double for the hosts before Stanely Ratifo sealed the victory.
The result leaves the Cranes six points off the top of group G but here is how the players rated on a tough day.
Ismail Watenga 1.0: A sloppy performance he will be eager to quickly forget as he was literally responsible for all three goals conceded. Replaced at halftime by Alionzi
Elvis Bwomono 3.0: Struggled against Gildo and allowed way too many crosses from his side. Created an opportunity for Okello in the second half and made a crucial clearance to deny Mozambique a fourth goal. Subbed for Ssekiganda midway the second half.
Aziz Kayondo 6.0: Decent defensively and gave it all going toe to toe with Sporting Lisbon’s Geny Catamo.
Elio Capradossi 4.0: Struggled against Pedro Santos and was never as confident as his first showing.
Bevis Mugabi 4.0: A little slow for the third goal but like many of his teammates improved after the first half.
Khalid Aucho 5.0: The captain gave it all, his passing was decent but came up against superior opponents in the middle. Denied by Mozambique goalkeeper in the second half.
Kenneth Ssemakula 4.0: Had little impact in the middle alongside Aucho before he switched to right back when Bwomono came off.
Allan Okello 6.0: Assisted Shaban’s goal with an exquisite free kick and denied by the cross bar after the break. Decent show but overwhelmed by superior opponents.
Denis Omedi 2.0: Rightly sent off for a second yellow card
Muhammad Shaban 5.0: Limited service for the front man especially after Omedi red card but got Uganda’s consolation with a poacher’s touch.
Jude Ssemugabi 4.0: A workaholic who never gave up but without a final result.
Substitutes
Alionzi Nafian 5.0: Not tested after coming on but looked more confident than Watenga.
Ronald Ssekiganda 3.0: A few decent touches but with less impact.
Steven Mukwala 3.0: Not much impact after replacing Shaban.
Calvin Kabuye N/a
Just more confidence needed for better results and the players maybe get over excited by the appearance of the pitch, otherwise good luck next time as we correct our errors mostly between the posts.
Have never seen bunch of weak players like the crane of this error. How can u failed to get a draw in away from home game. What if the host was at their real ground we wud have swallowed 6 goals.shame
This team is collectively psychologically weak. We will have to endure more pain as they gain experience. FUFA should expedite this process with meaningful games. Be careful, though, as too many games can fatigue a team and players learn to save themselves in these games which defeats the purpose.
The coaches seem to still be learning the players and team. However, it looks like nobody evaluated Watenga’s match readiness. Elio Capradossi was not match ready either.