Panafrican News Agency

Kenya names provisional team to CECAFA senior championships

Nairobi, Kenya (PANA)  -  Kenya senior national team coach Francis Kimanzi Saturday named the provisional squad for the upcoming CECAFA Senior Championships to be played in Uganda in December.

Coach Kimanzi said Saturday he had given a chance to former Bandari midfielder Anthony Wambani, who currently features for Swedish side Vasalunds IF.

Posta Rangers’ defender Suleiman Ngotho has also been given a chance.

Also called up for the annual men's regional event is Western Stima's sensational forward Benson Omala.

The Council of East and Central Africa (CECAFA)  championships is a regional event that doesn't warrant the calling up of top-notch footballers currently plying their trade abroad.

In a nutshell, it is a regional event that does not feature on the FIFA calendar.

Its a  an event used by the organizers to give home-based and upcoming talent to showcase their skills.

The team reports to camp on Monday, December 2, 2019, ahead of the regional showpiece, set for  December 7-19 in Uganda.

Kenya has been pooled in Group C alongside Tanzania, Djibouti, and Zanzibar, and will be looking to defend the title they won in Machakos in December 2017

Group A comprises host Uganda, Burundi, Ethiopia, and Eritrea. Group B has guest team DR Congo, Sudan, South Sudan, and Somalia.

Libya, a non-member of CECAFA, has expressed interest in featuring as a guest team.

CECAFA Secretary-General Nicholas Musonye says the request is being looked into and the council will get to Libya as soon as possible.

The top two teams in each group, as well as two best losers from the three groups, will proceed to the tournament’s quarterfinal.

 

-0-     PANA     DJ/RA   30Nov2019