What does the future hold after Tanzania?
Dec 27, 2007
For the second attempt, coach Laszlo Csaba’s Cranes side failed to match the grade in Dar es Salaam. But with the emergence of Caesar Okhuti and Owen Kasule it was not all a false dawn, writes FRED KAWEESI
For the second attempt, coach Laszlo Csaba’s Cranes side failed to match the grade in Dar es Salaam. But with the emergence of Caesar Okhuti and Owen Kasule it was not all a false dawn, writes FRED KAWEESI
A FAMILIAR sense of déjà vu must have reigned after the Uganda Cranes exited the CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup at the semi-final stage after failing to live up to their billing as pre-tournament favourites.
In the end, Sudan won the tournament, along with the top prize of US$30,000, while Rwanda –– Uganda’s conquerors in the semi-finals –– received US$20,000 for their second-place finish, courtesy of tournament sponsors GTV. The Cranes went home with US$10,000 after beating Burundi 2-0 in the third-place playoff.
The CECAFA failure came host on the heels of yet another futile attempt by the Cranes to qualify for the Nations Cup in Ghana in January next year, and the tag of CECAFA perennial underachievers under coach Laszlo Csaba’s two-and-half-year reign will dog Cranes for at least another year.
A side that showed so much youthful enthusiasm and promise could still not make it beyond the semi-final stages.
This year’s exit was made all the more disappointing by the fact that the youthful Cranes side had shown signs of potential greatness right from the start.
There was a sparkling 7-0 destruction of Djibouti, a gutsy 2-0 win over Rwanda and a historic triumph over Kenya in the quarter-finals.
Yet once again, Cranes, who last won the title in 2003, for the third consecutive year, came short through a combination of innocence, tactical naivety and lack of killer instinct –– and not just on the part of the players.
At 43, Csaba was one of the most experienced coaches at the CECAFA Championship, but was outwitted by more astute manoeuvers of his opposite numbers in several of Cranes’ matches.
Prior to the 34th CECAFA championship, Csaba supporters had pointed to his depth of trans-continental experience handling major clubs in Hungary and Germany. Add in the fact that only African giants Nigeria could manage to beat Uganda in the concluded 2008 Nations Cup campaign.
Yet, after the result against Rwanda, it became clear that Csaba still has to perfect his five primary roles as Cranes head coach.
That is, choosing the right tactics, selecting the right players, getting the best performance out of these players, making tactical adjustments where necessary, and most importantly squeezing a result out of nothing.
The striking crisis continues and it will not be resolved until Csaba finally decides to watch and unearth talent from the domestic league.
The belated inclusions of Owen Kasule (KCC FC) and Caesar Okhuti (Ediofe Hills) provided Csaba’s trusted and somewhat stodgy 4-4-2 formation with the cutting edge it badly needed. It was a clear indication that the domestic league still breeds sufficient talent capable of sustaining the national side.
A couple of CECAFA games besides also reinforced the belief that the German will still have to improve his knack of making changes on the fly. Kasule was the most glaring casualty of Csaba’s tactical problems, throwing the 18-year-old attacking midfielder into an unfamiliar central defense role in Cranes’ 3-2 defeat against Eritrea.
Against Kenya, Okhuti and Hamza Muwonge were the sole reason Csaba had to rub his chin with relief after escaping certain defeat to the Harambee Stars; a defeat that would largely have been blamed on regrettable choices from the bench.
If the idea of bringing on Julius Mulindwa for Hamis Kitagenda against the Harambee Stars with 25 minutes to go was supposed to have been a defensive strategy, then it was at the very least shocking.
The inclusion of the defensive -player simply retarded the team’s inventive style. While pinging 40-yard passes and looking like the best player on view, Mulindwa cut his attacking colleagues out of play and reduced Cranes to literally playing with nine men.
It brought to mind the Niger game, a fixture Cranes had to win at a canter to guarantee Nations Cup qualification.
The choice of having five defenders –– Nestroy Kizito, Andrew Mwesigwa, Simeon Masaba, Timothy Batabaire and Ibrahim Sekagya –– at the expense of the more inventive Assan Bajope against the Menna was not only bizzare but called into question Csaba’s aptitude in playing the right cards.
With the Nations/ World Cup qualifiers kicking off on May 31, Csaba has approximately four months to right the wrong with hope of registering a better and consistent run in through the campaign.
As it is, the problem for Csaba is that the nation expects so much from the Cranes team especially given what several youngsters exhibited in Dar es salaam.
In goal, Hamza Muwonge, drafted in as Hannington Kalyesubuula’s replacement did not disappoint though youngsters Abbey Dhaira and Mulindwa Muwonge will have to be kept close in the wings to provide sufficient competition.
At the back, Musa Doka gave genuine performances to justify consideration in future engagements.
The URA FC central defender proved defensively sound, while right-back Simeon Masaba confirmed his ability to be the springboard for attacks.
Masaba epitomizes the modern full-back, a player capable of rugged ball-winning as well as launching high tempo attacks on the flanks.
This brings us to the attacking midfield conundrum –an area where Csaba had to continue shuffling between Kasule and Tony Mawejje on the occasions Bajope was forced to seat out due to injury.
Against Rwanda, the absence of Bajope denied Cranes the desired creativity but in Kasule, the nation should celebrate the emergence of an upcoming star, for whom not only is his use of the ball masterful, but his tackling and movement equally impressive.
The fast emerging talent of Okhuti, arguably Csaba’s best harvest from Dar es salaam, was a valuable prospect that has even gone on to create debate as to who will provide the best counter-balance to South Africa-based striker Geoffrey Massa.
The job of ensuring that the sum of the team’s performances proves, as it will need to, greater than what is in place, will fall to the wise hands of Csaba.
In the past, Cranes have been undone by the inability of second-choice players to perform when it matters. The first XI will be motivated, but keeping the second team content will be as crucial.
With Cranes expected to engage just about four matches in June next year, Csaba will need a Plan B and virtually 25 top players to sustain the campaign as there will be suspensions and injuries. This will however only be possible if Csaba isn’t blinded by loyalties and keeps a section of his mind open to the local-based breed of players.
Happy New Year!
A FAMILIAR sense of déjà vu must have reigned after the Uganda Cranes exited the CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup at the semi-final stage after failing to live up to their billing as pre-tournament favourites.
In the end, Sudan won the tournament, along with the top prize of US$30,000, while Rwanda –– Uganda’s conquerors in the semi-finals –– received US$20,000 for their second-place finish, courtesy of tournament sponsors GTV. The Cranes went home with US$10,000 after beating Burundi 2-0 in the third-place playoff.
The CECAFA failure came host on the heels of yet another futile attempt by the Cranes to qualify for the Nations Cup in Ghana in January next year, and the tag of CECAFA perennial underachievers under coach Laszlo Csaba’s two-and-half-year reign will dog Cranes for at least another year.
A side that showed so much youthful enthusiasm and promise could still not make it beyond the semi-final stages.
This year’s exit was made all the more disappointing by the fact that the youthful Cranes side had shown signs of potential greatness right from the start.
There was a sparkling 7-0 destruction of Djibouti, a gutsy 2-0 win over Rwanda and a historic triumph over Kenya in the quarter-finals.
Yet once again, Cranes, who last won the title in 2003, for the third consecutive year, came short through a combination of innocence, tactical naivety and lack of killer instinct –– and not just on the part of the players.
At 43, Csaba was one of the most experienced coaches at the CECAFA Championship, but was outwitted by more astute manoeuvers of his opposite numbers in several of Cranes’ matches.
Prior to the 34th CECAFA championship, Csaba supporters had pointed to his depth of trans-continental experience handling major clubs in Hungary and Germany. Add in the fact that only African giants Nigeria could manage to beat Uganda in the concluded 2008 Nations Cup campaign.
Yet, after the result against Rwanda, it became clear that Csaba still has to perfect his five primary roles as Cranes head coach.
That is, choosing the right tactics, selecting the right players, getting the best performance out of these players, making tactical adjustments where necessary, and most importantly squeezing a result out of nothing.
The striking crisis continues and it will not be resolved until Csaba finally decides to watch and unearth talent from the domestic league.
The belated inclusions of Owen Kasule (KCC FC) and Caesar Okhuti (Ediofe Hills) provided Csaba’s trusted and somewhat stodgy 4-4-2 formation with the cutting edge it badly needed. It was a clear indication that the domestic league still breeds sufficient talent capable of sustaining the national side.
A couple of CECAFA games besides also reinforced the belief that the German will still have to improve his knack of making changes on the fly. Kasule was the most glaring casualty of Csaba’s tactical problems, throwing the 18-year-old attacking midfielder into an unfamiliar central defense role in Cranes’ 3-2 defeat against Eritrea.
Against Kenya, Okhuti and Hamza Muwonge were the sole reason Csaba had to rub his chin with relief after escaping certain defeat to the Harambee Stars; a defeat that would largely have been blamed on regrettable choices from the bench.
If the idea of bringing on Julius Mulindwa for Hamis Kitagenda against the Harambee Stars with 25 minutes to go was supposed to have been a defensive strategy, then it was at the very least shocking.
The inclusion of the defensive -player simply retarded the team’s inventive style. While pinging 40-yard passes and looking like the best player on view, Mulindwa cut his attacking colleagues out of play and reduced Cranes to literally playing with nine men.
It brought to mind the Niger game, a fixture Cranes had to win at a canter to guarantee Nations Cup qualification.
The choice of having five defenders –– Nestroy Kizito, Andrew Mwesigwa, Simeon Masaba, Timothy Batabaire and Ibrahim Sekagya –– at the expense of the more inventive Assan Bajope against the Menna was not only bizzare but called into question Csaba’s aptitude in playing the right cards.
With the Nations/ World Cup qualifiers kicking off on May 31, Csaba has approximately four months to right the wrong with hope of registering a better and consistent run in through the campaign.
As it is, the problem for Csaba is that the nation expects so much from the Cranes team especially given what several youngsters exhibited in Dar es salaam.
In goal, Hamza Muwonge, drafted in as Hannington Kalyesubuula’s replacement did not disappoint though youngsters Abbey Dhaira and Mulindwa Muwonge will have to be kept close in the wings to provide sufficient competition.
At the back, Musa Doka gave genuine performances to justify consideration in future engagements.
The URA FC central defender proved defensively sound, while right-back Simeon Masaba confirmed his ability to be the springboard for attacks.
Masaba epitomizes the modern full-back, a player capable of rugged ball-winning as well as launching high tempo attacks on the flanks.
This brings us to the attacking midfield conundrum –an area where Csaba had to continue shuffling between Kasule and Tony Mawejje on the occasions Bajope was forced to seat out due to injury.
Against Rwanda, the absence of Bajope denied Cranes the desired creativity but in Kasule, the nation should celebrate the emergence of an upcoming star, for whom not only is his use of the ball masterful, but his tackling and movement equally impressive.
The fast emerging talent of Okhuti, arguably Csaba’s best harvest from Dar es salaam, was a valuable prospect that has even gone on to create debate as to who will provide the best counter-balance to South Africa-based striker Geoffrey Massa.
The job of ensuring that the sum of the team’s performances proves, as it will need to, greater than what is in place, will fall to the wise hands of Csaba.
In the past, Cranes have been undone by the inability of second-choice players to perform when it matters. The first XI will be motivated, but keeping the second team content will be as crucial.
With Cranes expected to engage just about four matches in June next year, Csaba will need a Plan B and virtually 25 top players to sustain the campaign as there will be suspensions and injuries. This will however only be possible if Csaba isn’t blinded by loyalties and keeps a section of his mind open to the local-based breed of players.
Happy New Year!