GIGANTIC TEST: Can a thin-on-numbers KCCA defy the odds and make it ouf of Caf group of death?

Caf Champions league fixtures this weekend

Group A

Friday;

Ahly (Egypt) vs Esperance (Tunisia)

Alexandria

Township Rollers (Botswana) vs KCCA (Uganda)

By Denis West

Ugandan football stakeholders were mesmerized by the choice of KCCA manager Mike Mutebi’s season recruitment back in August.

Looking at the pending Caf Champions League group stage task, their fears may have been justified.

After jettisoning a bulk of experienced players including Tom Masiko, Robert Ssentongo, Vincent Kayizzi, Vincent Akinyemi, Douglas Kisembo and Geoffrey Sserunkuma that had guided KCCA to the league and cup double joy and almost dragged the club out of the Caf Confederations, Mutebi shot himself in the foot.

Burnt fingers in transfer market

Mutebi, bearing in mind he had to compete on three fronts – Uganda Premeir League, Uganda Cup and Caf Confederations Cup, shocked many by signing non-entities; Jamil Malyamungu, Filbert Obenchan, James Begisa, Allan Oryek, Mohammad Abdullah, Faisal Kiberu, Ibrahim Wamannah Ibrahim, Abubakar Saddiq Tijjani,Faisam Malango Ndjibu,Patrick Kaddu and Tito Okello. Apart from Muhammad Shaban, who joined a month later after a tug of war with parent club Onduparaka, the rest of the signings have proved to be ‘deals gone bad’ with half of them already departing the club.

After trailing in the league and broken down by injuries, Mutebi noticed his transfer ‘mistakes’ and thus raided the January market again to beef up.

In came Solomon Okwalinga, Thomas Ikara, Hassan Musana, Abubakar Matsiko, Steven Sserwadda and Herbert Achai but still no one has been able to break into the first eleven!

Meeting old boy

This Friday, KCCA, in the Uganda Cup semis and almost giving up on the league title chase, takes on Township Rollers in the opening game of the Caf group games.

It is an away match in which they not only have to face steely old boy Ivan Ntege but also have to arrest a damning away winningless form on the continent that now stretches to nine matches.

Stiffer encounters against two-time caf winners Esperance and eight-time winners Al Ahly lay in wait.

Harvesting more money

KCCA are guaranteed Shs1.9bn (US$550, 000) for getting this far.

Making the last eight would guarantee KCCA US$675,000 (Shs2.4bn).

This increases to $875,000 (Shs3.1bn) in the last four and US$2.25m (Shs8.1bn) will be given in prize money for the overall winner in November. There is US$1.25m (Shs4.5bn) in consolation for the beaten finalists.

Executive Director Jennifer Musisi Ssemakula just recently gave Shs540m ($150000) of the Shs1.9bn (US$550, 000) accrued the Caf Champions League group progress to the players and technical team to share out. She also also ordered the players’ match bonus be increased to Shs500,000 for each player and be paid immediately. This could motivate the boys to work their socks off to earn more money if they make it to later stages.

Dealing with the Magreb challenge

Al Ahly and Esperance are not new opposition to Ugandan clubs. In 1978, a strong KCCA side, missed an opportunity to face Al Ahly who skipped their 1978 Caf Champions League encounter. KCCA got a walkover to advance to quarterfinals where they were beaten by Nigeria’s Enugu Rangers.

In 1991, the all conquering SC Villa side surprised many by knocking out Al Ahly in the quarterfials before falling 7-3 to tunisian giants Club Africain. Villa beat the Egyptians 4-2 on penalties after winning 2-0 at Nakivubo. Robert Ssemakula and Zaidi Tebesigwa scored the goals. Villa had lost 2-0 in Cairo in the first leg.In the 1997 Caf Cup semifinals is the last time KCCA faced Esperance. The Tunisians won 3-1 at Nakivubo and the return leg was one to forget after the yound side Mike Mutebi had assembled.

fell to a 6-0 score at the Stade Olympique De Rades. In 1998, Livingstone Mbabazi gave Express a slim 1-0 second round victory over Esperance at Nakivubo in the African Cup Winners’ Cup.

Esperance won the return encounter 2-0 for 2-1 aggregate result.

Uganda clubs seem to get their way on Arabs at home but things falla apart awaya.Al Ahly were held to a goalless draw by SC Villa in the second round of the first leg of the 2005 Champions’ League at Nakivubo thanks to Denis Onyango heroics in goal but the likes of Mohamed Aboutrika, Emad Mohammed, Mohamed Barakat and Mohammed Shawky subjected Sam Timbe’s side to a 6-0 mauling at the Cairo Military Academy Stadium in the reverse fixture.

Can they overcome the injury crisis and fixture pile up?

Midfielders Muzamir Mutyaba and Sadam Juma, supposedly the drivers of that KCCA team have developed great love for the surgeon’s table recently. They are occasionally joined by striker Derrick Nsibambi who is supposed to be supplementing Shaban’s goals.African football has changed over years granting hitherto minnows a chance to step up, but it will take a miracle for KCCA, still saddled with a tense title run-in and Uganda Cup semis, to make it out of group A.