The veteran Ugandan tactician remains confident of a positive start in their domestic cup campaign as they chase for a double
Express FC coach Wasswa Bbosa has stated they have rectified mistakes in the final third as they take on Kyetume FC in the first leg of their Round of 16 clash in the Uganda Cup on Tuesday.
The Red Eagles will travel away to face their fellow Ugandan Premier League side at Fufa Technical Training Centre in Njeru, seeking to draw first blood in the fixture.
Express opened their campaign in the second round of the league with a resounding 3-1 win over table-toppers URA FC at Wankulukulu Stadium last Saturday, but they will have to put up a fight against a side that held them to a 0-0 draw in their first-round meeting in the top-tier to earn the advantage heading into the second leg.
Coach Bbosa has admitted during their first meeting in the league, his charges struggled to use chances they had created but said they had worked on the problem and were ready for the match, as their target this season is to win both the league and the domestic cup.
“We’ve prepared well coming into this next game, the league win over URA gave us a boost but now next up is a knock-out competition [Uganda Cup,” Bbosa told the club’s official website.
“We face Kyetume whom we faced in the first round of the league but we shared a point in a 0-0 draw, we created chances which we didn’t convert so concentration has been on the final third, the players know we have to compete in both competitions [domestic cup and league] to help the club win silverware.”
On his part, midfielder John Byamukama explained they are ready to step up their game against the side which denied them maximum points when they faced off in the first round.
“First of all, we’re happy we picked our first win at home in our last league game but now our focus is on tomorrow’s [Tuesday’s] game against Kyetume,” Byamukama told the same portal.
“We faced them in the first round so we know how to handle them, the players are ready to step up from the start and our main target is to win the Uganda Cup and we hope to achieve it.”
Bbosa will welcome back centre-back Murushid Juuko, who is available for selection since his suspension only affects league games while midfielder Abel Etrude remains in the sickbay along with Arthur Kiggundu and forward George Senkaaba.
Express and Kyetume will be meeting for the first time in the history of the domestic Cup with the Red Eagles last winning the competition in 2007 while the hosts have never won it nor reached the final in their history.
Owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, the domestic cup will be played on a home and away basis save for the final, meaning Express host Kyetume in the return leg on April 10.