Uganda Cranes captain Dennis Onyango has thrown his full support behind teammate Allan Okello after the playmaker’s late penalty miss cost the team an important victory against Tanzania on Saturday evening.
In what was effectively a must-win East African derby at the Stade El Barid, Uganda had a golden opportunity to secure three points in the dying moments.
With the score locked at 1-1 in the 90th minute, the Cranes were awarded a penalty after James Bogere was fouled in the box.
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25-year-old Okello, stepped up to take the responsibility. His effort however sailed over the crossbar, leaving the Cranes to settle for a single point.
Uganda Cranes captain Dennis Onyango backs Allan Okello
Speaking at the Mixed Zone after the match, the veteran goalkeeper insisted that the squad remains united and that Okello should not be scapegoated for the result.
The team is behind him regardless of what has happened. Maybe he will be our match winner against Nigeria, you never know.
We need to protect him and keep him strong because that’s the game of football. He missed the opportunity to win it for us, but they also got an opportunity and could have won it.”
Onyango, who returned from retirement to lead the team in Morocco, emphasized that the experience would serve as a learning curve for the young attacking midfielder.
“That’s the game of football. We believe he will learn from it and come back stronger because he is still a young man.”
The draw leaves Uganda with just one point from two matches in Group C. To keep their hopes of qualifying for the knockout stages alive, the Cranes now face the a big task of defeating giants Nigeria on Tuesday.
The Super Eagles have already secured qualification after beating Tunisia and Tanzania but Onyango believes his side is capable of a historic result.
A lot needs to be done, more hard-work needed in the team because we are going to play a very good team; individually and as a whole team they are very good with a lot of quality.
We just need to rely on our hard work and moments because every game you’ll get an opportunity, but it’s how we take it. We believe we have a team that could cause an upset.”
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With the opening 3-1 loss to Tunisia and the 1-1 draw against Tanzania, Uganda sits at the bottom of the table.
To qualify automatically to the knockout stage,Uganda must beat Nigeria and hope Tanzania beats or draws with Tunisia, while overcoming a significant goal difference gap.
To qualify as one of the best third-placed teams,Uganda needs a win against Nigeria to reach four points and hope other matches in the other groups go their way.
