Rwanda coach Johnny McKinstry has emphasized that Amavubi’s main focus will be winning their Group H Afcon qualifier against Mozambique on June 4 at Amahoro Stadium in Kigali. Victory against Os Mambas next Saturday will steer Amavubi in the right direction
towards Afcon 2017 qualification but a loss will deter any available hope to secure a ticket to Gabon next January.
McKinstry told supersport.com after their last training session on Friday that, “Yes, we want to win tomorrow but it is more important to get ready for Mozambique.”
“Everyone would accept that we can get three points against Mozambique. We will accept any result against Senegal, any result at all as long as we win next week against Mozambique.”
Rwanda stunned Mozambique in the opening Afcon 2017 qualifier last June in Maputo to record their first away win in four years but lost 1-0 to Afcon 2015 finalists Ghana in September.
A shock 1-0 loss to Mauritius in Belle Vue in March threatened Rwanda’s chances of qualification but a superb comeback three days saw the Amavubi register their biggest win in Afcon qualification, a remarkable and memorable 5-0 victory in front of a fully packed Amahoro Stadium.
It is against this background that the Northern Irish tactician is keen on registering maximum points and perhaps a step closer to Rwanda’s second participation at the continental tournament that attracts the crème de la crème in Africa.
Rwanda’s last appearance at Afcon was back in 2004 at the expense of bitter rivals and neighbours Uganda as well as Ghana.
