KAMPALA, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Uganda's coach Mathias Lule has named a squad of 20 players ahead of the qualifiers for the 2019 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) scheduled between Nov. 12-20.
Lule told Xinhua in an interview on Tuesday that the players shall start with a non-residential training on Friday and Saturday.
"We want to start early so that the team is ready for the first round matches next month," the coach said.
The U-23 team, Uganda Kobs has been drawn to battle South Sudan in the first round between Nov. 12-20. The overall winner over the two legs will meet Tunisia in the second round between March 18-26 next year.
Qualifiers for the 2019 U-23 AFCON have attracted 43 teams. The final tournament will take place in Egypt.
The 13 teams that have been exempted from featuring in the first round and head straight to the next round include Algeria, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Gabon, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tunisia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Uganda's squad includes Saidi Keni, Tom Ikara, Paul Wila, Geoffrey Wasswa, Patrick Mbowa, Hassan Musana, Robert Kitabalwa, Alex Komakech, Ivan Eyam and Nicholas Kasozi.
The others are Frank Tumwesigye, Shafik Kuchi Kagimu, David Owori, Joel Madondo, Stephen Mukwala, Lawrence Bukenya, Sadat Anaku, Kakaire Tomas, Iddi Abdul Wahid and Ashraf Mugume.
