Cranes skipper Andy Mwesigwa’s calamitous outing on the final day of the 2015 Nations Cup qualifiers put the final nail in Uganda’s hopes of ending 37 years of absence from the showpiece.
The FC Ordabasy defender’s poor judgment told in both goals as Guinea ran out 2-0 comfortable winners over 10-man Uganda in Casablanca last evening. Ibrahima Traore and Soumah Seydouba netted the goals.
The result saw Guinea qualify for the 2015 Afcon in Equatorial Guinea next January/February alongside Ghana, who thrashed Togo 3-1. Ghana topped Group E with 11 points, Guinea on 10, with Uganda and Togo on seven and six respectively.
Guinea’s intentions were clear from onset; Traore giving Godfrey Walusimbi a dose of what awaited the leftback for the rest of the game. He first beat him but Dennis Onyango was on hand to pick his curling ball.
Just inside 15 minutes, Guinea’s wave of attacks were countless.
Traore continued offering lessons to Walusimbi while Seydouba, quiet by his standards, tested Isaac Isinde and Mwesigwa, who partnered Savio Kabugo in central defence.
It was just a matter of time before they broke the deadlock. One of those multitudes of balls rolling in for Seydouba.
As Seydouba headed for the box, Mwesigwa bought the poison chalice, springing into the Guinean for Senegalese referee Malang Diedhiou to make use of his whistle.
The free kick at the edge of the area meant Traore time. The man Walusimbi will want to forget real fast sweetly struck it through a pedestrian Ugandan wall for a 23rd-minute lead. For Onyango, he only managed to catch a glimpse of the shaking net.
Uganda’s first sniff at the hosts’ goal came on 35 minutes after a neat interchange between Walusimbi and Brian Majwega, who played ahead of the former on the left flank. But Cranes players did not take President Museveni’s positioning advice on the resultant corner and succeeding ones.
Traore curled in a free-kick the other end after Tonny Mawejje had fouled Sylla Idrissa but Onyango punched out. If the half time whistle was relief for Uganda, the restart blow welcomed them to a raunchy mountain.
Anonymous Miya
Farouq Miya was first sighted when he chased a loose ball from Guinea defender Pogba Florentin. He was again seen coming off for Daniel Sserunkuma, who from his substitute’s performance against Ghana should have started ahead of the former. It only went from bad to worse for the Cranes; and for Mwesigwa, closer to an exit door if not already there.
Against Ghana last weekend, Mwesigwa was saved from a sending-off by Savio Kabugo covering him when he employed a rugby tackle on Majeed Waris.
Here, he recklessly lunged into Seydouba leading to the first goal before wresting Idrissa to the ground for the second. Penalty.
Seydouba stepped forward to beat Onyango to his low left on the hour and to take his tally to five of the campaign. Micho introduced Mike Sserumaga in place of Majwega, and Robert Ssentongo for Kizito Luwagga but they couldn’t save the day.
Afcon qualifiers
YESTERDAY’S RESULTS
D.R. Congo 3–1 Sierra Leone
Ivory Coast 0–0 Cameroon
Ethiopia 0–0 Malawi
Ghana 3–1 Togo
Guinea 2–0 Uganda
Mali 2–0 Algeria
Niger 1–1 Mozambique
Zambia 1–0 Cape Verde
Nigeria 2–2 South Africa
Sudan 0-1 C. Brazzaville
QUALIFIED TEAMSÂ
Equatorial Guinea, Cape Verde, Ghana, Guinea, Algeria, Tunisia, South Africa, Zambia, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Senegal, Ivory Coast