Uganda Hippos Begin Road to AFCON With a Flourish After Dismantling Djibouti

The Uganda U20 national team, known as the Hippos, kicked off their CECAFA qualifiers for the U20 Africa Cup of Nations with a convincing 4-1 victory over Djibouti at Uhuru Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

The win immediately places Uganda at the top of Group B. Isma Mugulusi gave Uganda a dream start, finding the net just five minutes into the match.

However, Djibouti responded when substitute Ishak Tahir leveled the score in the 23rd minute. The Hippos managed to reclaim their lead just before halftime through a goal from Genesis Ocen Odiya, but coach Laryea Kingston was unimpressed with his team's first-half performance.

Kingston noted that his players failed to follow the game plan, which was to keep Djibouti contained in their own half, control the tempo in the final third, and prevent them from reorganizing defensively.

"When we lost the ball, our positioning in the attacking balance wasn't clear," Kingston explained, highlighting how poor spacing left his team exposed to Djibouti's counter-attacks.

Uganda emerged from the break with renewed focus, effectively stretching the Djibouti defence and creating opportunities for their forwards. "In the second half, we were much better. We made good runs into the box and attacked the right spaces," the coach added.

The improved performance paid off when team captain Richard Okello increased Uganda's lead at the 60-minute mark. Mugulusi then secured his second goal of the match, sealing the 4-1 win.

Djibouti struggled to create meaningful chances in the second half, with their efforts mostly limited to long-range shots that did not trouble the Ugandan goalkeeper. This crucial opening victory sets a positive tone for Uganda ahead of their next Group B match against Sudan.

The CECAFA qualifiers consist of three groups. The winner of each group, along with the best-performing second-placed team, will advance to the semi-finals. The two finalists will secure a spot in the 2025 U-20 AFCON in Ghana, which serves as the qualifier for the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

In other opening-day matches, Burundi secured a commanding 4-0 win against South Sudan to lead Group C, while hosts Tanzania defeated Rwanda 3-0 in Group A.