The fortress at Kitende is painted red once again, this time for a continental duel that promises sweat, steel and spectacle.
Vipers SC, Uganda’s reigning Premier League and Uganda Cup champions, face Zambia’s Power Dynamos in a CAF Champions League second preliminary round showdown that has captured the imagination of the nation.
For only the second time since its inauguration, St. Mary’s Stadium has sold out completely.
Every seat, every step, every voice will echo for the Venoms tonight. Uganda’s football faithful, often divided, have found rare unity behind the champions, a statement of national pride after the recent league format saga that momentarily shook the domestic scene.
Vipers, buoyed by their 2-0 aggregate win over Namibia’s African Stars, are on the hunt for another continental breakthrough.
Power Dynamos arrive with pedigree, having eliminated ASEC Mimosas of Ivory Coast on penalties, but they now walk into the roaring den of Kitende, where ambition meets atmosphere.
Head coach Jacky Ivan Minnaert will rely on experience and creativity. Milton Karisa, who famously netted against Platinum Stars years ago, remains one of the Venoms’ sharpest weapons.
His combination play with Yunus Sentamu, Allan Okello, and Tadeo Lwanga could define the tempo of the night. Add the composure of Hilary Mukundane, Karim Watambala, and Siraje Ssebagala, and Vipers look every inch a side ready to bite.
But Power Dynamos carry history in their boots, they once ousted Uganda’s KCCA in 1998. Still, under the bright Kitende floodlights, history may bow to hunger. The Zambians have not reached the group stages in the modern CAF era, while Vipers tasted that elite phase two seasons ago.
Probable Vipers XI:
Kiggundu (GK); Mandela, Daslyva, Mukundane, Ndahiro; Lwanga, Ssebagala; Watambala, Okello, Yunus, Karisa.
Leave feedback about this