David GOMBE
Uganda Premier League champions Vipers SC will be aiming for a first leg advantage when they face off with Namibia side African Stars in the CAF Champions League preliminary first round on Friday night.
African Stars will host the first leg at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town since Namibian stadiums are out of bounds to host international Confederation of African Football (CAF) matches.
The Venoms under Belgian tactician Ivan Jacky Minneart are looking at emulating the 2022/23 squad that reached the group stages of the competition.
During the transfer window Vipers beefed up their squad with the acquisition of Robin Kane Hney, Odili Chukwuma, Mark Yallah, Kevin Dasylva Bady, Taddeo Lwanga, Ashraf Mandela and Enock Ssebaggala.
Usama Arafat is the other new signing at Vipers but did not travel with the team to South Africa along with Kenneth Kimera and Moses Waiswa.
The Venoms will heavily rely on mr reliable Allan Okello for inspiration. Okello scored 19 league goals last season and was impressive for the Uganda Cranes at the CHAN tournament and World Cup qualifiers.
For African Stars, they have two Caf Champions league appearances 2019 and 2020) and have never reached the group stages of the competition.
The Namibia side has managed eight league titles as well as several Namibia Football Association Cups.
African Stars are under the stewardship of Bob Mafoso from Lesotho who anticipates a tough match against Vipers
“They compete in the Champions League just about every season and they regularly win the Ugandan league. In general Ugandan players are known for their athleticism and they are runners, so they will be tough opponents,” he said.
“Four or five of their players haven’t played in the pre-season yet, and they also have a new coach, so they are a bit of a closed book. But the draw could have been worse and I’d say it’s quite open and anyone can win we must just work on our finer details,” he added.
South African winger Jaylen Trent, defender Tino Guiseb, goalkeeper Michael James, defender Tuli Nashixwa, winger Wendell Rudath, Zambian striker Emmanuel Kalala are some of the new recruits for the Namibian side.
Vipers will host the return fixture on Saturday, 27th September at St.Mary’s Stadium in Kitende.
The aggregate winner after two legs will take on the winner between Zambian league champions Power Dynamos and the Ivory Coast league runners-up Asec Mimosa, in the second qualifying round.
