No room for slip-ups as Kenya U-20 play Djibouti in Dar
Kenya’s Beja Hassan (right) tussles for the ball with Tanzania’s Nickson Mosha during their Group “A” opening match of the Cecafa Under-20 Afcon qualifiers at the Kinondoni Municipal Council in Dar es Salaam on October 6, 2024.
What you need to know:
- In Group “B”, Uganda and South Sudan are the teams that have stormed the semi-finals after garnering seven and four points respectively.
- Burundi finished third with three points ahead of winless Ethiopia.
Kenya will have no room for complacency when they face Djibouti Sunday in the ongoing Cecafa qualifiers for 2025 Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Dar es Salaam.
The Group ‘A’’match will be held at Kinondoni Municipal Council (KMC) from 4pm (Kenyan time). In another Group ‘A’ match planned for today, hosts Tanzania will take on Rwanda at Azam Sports Complex from 7pm.
Kenya’s chances of qualifying for the 2025 Afcon are in jeopardy as they currently sit third in the group with four points from two matches.
Tanzania and Sudan, who have all played one extra match are first and second respectively with six points each.
Rwanda and Djibouti, each with a game in hand, occupy the fourth and fifth positions with one and zero points respectively. Before departing for Dar es Salaam, Kenya’s coach Salim Babu said the team is going for nothing less than the title in the tournament.
To increase their chances of achieving that target and qualify for the upcoming Afcon U20, the Rising Stars must bounce back to winning ways against Djibouti.
Only the two finalists will qualify for the continental showpiece.
Group ‘B’ features defending champions Uganda, South Sudan, Burundi, and Ethiopia. The 2025 Uner-20 Afcon will also feature teams from Caf’s Central Zone, South Zone, West ‘A’ Zone, West ‘B’ Zone, and North Zone.
The host country for the continental showpiece will be decided on October 22 during a Caf General Assembly in Addis Ababa.
Kenya did not do themselves any favour when they squandered several scoring chances to settle for a barren draw with Rwanda on Thursday. Babu will demand more from his attackers today.
The Rising Stars made a bright start to the campaign by defeating Tanzania 2-1. Meanwhile, Djibouti will be out to register their first win of the campaign after they lost 3-1 and 7-0 to Sudan and Tanzania respectively.
Tanzania took the lead in the pool after defeating Sudan by a solitary goal on Thursday. Sudan’s other win was by a solitary goal against Rwanda.
In Group “B”, Uganda and South Sudan are the teams that have stormed the semi-finals after garnering seven and four points respectively.
Burundi finished third with three points ahead of winless Ethiopia.
Playing Today
Djibouti v Kenya KMC Stadium 4 pm
Tanzania v Rwanda Azam Complex 7 pm
