The Vipers SC player was one of the players who made a debut in the competition and played for the entire 90 minutes
Uganda midfielder Abdul Karim Watambala is delighted to have been involved in their Chan game against Rwanda despite settling for a goalless draw.
The 2019 Cecafa Senior Challenge champions played their neighbours Amavubi in the Group C game hoping to get maximum points. However, it was their opponents who played a good game, especially in the first half and even struck the woodwork twice.
The Vipers SC player is happy to have been given the opportunity by coach Johnathan McKinstry to make his debut in Africa’s second-tier competition.
“It has been my first time in Chan, and I am delighted to have played for the entire 90 minutes,” Watambala told Goal.
“I have learned many things because when you are playing big teams every time you learn new things. I am looking forward to delivering in my second game [against Togo] if given the opportunity.”
The Venom has also opined on their game that was played at Stade de la Réunification in Douala.
“We played our first game against Rwanda [on Monday] expecting a win but we did not get the result we wanted,” Watambala continued.
“We did not get most chances for scoring a goal, now it is back to the drawing board and we hope going forward we will score goals but if we create enough chances.”
McKinstry believes his players did not push themselves to the limit against their East African neighbours.
“The first half of the game was really quite frustrating I think the players and for the staff alike and the display was below the level and I know we can play better than we did,” the Northern Irish coach told Goal.
“One of the things we deployed at half time is that they have to play football, they have to pass the ball.
“I felt that maybe it was through a little bit of nervousness you know for a lot of players it was their first time at this level and you know…yes it was an East African derby but it is a new level for them, Chan is a step up just in terms of pressure and so I feel some of the players felt that pressure and they were not willing to play those punchy passes especially into our attacking midfielders.”
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