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2019 Africa Cup of Nations: Group A preview

By Liam Bekker

An Egyptian walks along a pedestrian crossing beneath a bridge in the Nile of island of Zamalek in the heart of the capital Cairo on September 5, 2018, towards a graffiti mural depicting players of the national football team and its star and Liverpool FC striker Mohamed Salah (C). - Mohamed Salah, back in Egypt for African Cup of Nations qualifiers, has already scored a victory, forcing his national football federation to back down after a war of nerves. (Photo by Mohamed el-Shahed / AFP) (Photo credit should read MOHAMED EL-SHAHED/AFP/Getty Images)
An Egyptian walks along a pedestrian crossing beneath a bridge in the Nile of island of Zamalek in the heart of the capital Cairo on September 5, 2018, towards a graffiti mural depicting players of the national football team and its star and Liverpool FC striker Mohamed Salah (C). - Mohamed Salah, back in Egypt for African Cup of Nations qualifiers, has already scored a victory, forcing his national football federation to back down after a war of nerves. (Photo by Mohamed el-Shahed / AFP) (Photo credit should read MOHAMED EL-SHAHED/AFP/Getty Images) /
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Uganda’s Massa Godfrey (L) celebrates with Emmanuel Okwi (R) after scorinf his team’s third goal against Congo during the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations first round, second leg qualifying between Uganda and Congo at the Nelson Mandela Namboole Stadium in Kampala on June 16, 2012. Uganda won 4-0. AFP PHOTO/MICHELE SIBILONI (Photo credit should read MICHELE SIBILONI/AFP/GettyImages)
Uganda’s Massa Godfrey (L) celebrates with Emmanuel Okwi (R) after scorinf his team’s third goal against Congo during the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations first round, second leg qualifying between Uganda and Congo at the Nelson Mandela Namboole Stadium in Kampala on June 16, 2012. Uganda won 4-0. AFP PHOTO/MICHELE SIBILONI (Photo credit should read MICHELE SIBILONI/AFP/GettyImages) /

UGANDA

1978 runners-up Uganda will be making their seventh appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations. The 80th ranked nation in the world will be hoping to improve on their 2017 performance where they made an early exit from the tournament after failing to win a match and scoring only one goal.

Qualification

Drawn alongside Cape Verde, Lesotho and Tanzania, Uganda found themselves in a favorable qualification group and made light work of getting the job done. With veteran ‘keeper Denis Onyango between the sticks and the supremely talented Farouk Miya leading the line, Sébastien Desabre’s side breezed through their opening five matches without conceding a goal and having scored seven of their own.

The only black mark on Uganda’s campaign came in their final match when they suffered a heavy 3-0 defeat to Tanzania. The result secured Tanzania’s qualification for the tournament but was of little consequence for Uganda who had already booked their ticket to Egypt as table-toppers.

The squad

Uganda boast one of the most diverse squads at the Africa Cup of Nations with a selection of players from four different continents. Onyango and forward Allan Kateregga hail from the South African Premier Division while Croatian-based Miya is the nation’s best player currently playing in Europe.

MLS fans will be familiar with Montreal Impact midfielder Micheal Azira who has been included in the final squad while Asia is represented by Khalid Aucho and Jamal Salim. Austrian-based forward Edrisa Lubega is a notable absentee but there are otherwise no real surprises in The Cranes’ squad

Key player: Farouk Miya

Farouk Miya is nothing short of a generational talent. The 21-year old has already made 59 appearances for Uganda and became the nation’s all-time leading goalscorer on Saturday when he scored his 22nd goal during a 1-0 friendly win over Ivory Coast.

The attacking midfielder was Uganda’s top scorer in qualifying with three goals and will need to be at his creative and goalscoring best if he and his nation are to progress to the knockout stages of the competition.

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