Football
Andrew Oryada, Special to ESPN 5y

Uganda's Desabre will be given time, vows Magogo

Uganda coach Sebastien Desabre will be given ample time to establish himself as Cranes boss and follow in the footsteps of his predecessor Milutin Sredojevic, according to FUFA President Moses Magogo.

The Frenchman was appointed in December 2017, but only won his first competitive game with the East Africans at the weekend, as they defeated Lesotho 3-0 in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying.

Speaking to KweséESPN, FUFA President Magogo insists that he's impressed with the Frenchman's start to life with Uganda and confirmed that he'll be given time to instil the squad with his philosophy.

"It's too early to judge coach Desabre," Magogo began. "The sample space of matches to judge the coach are still too few and we have not [evaluated] him [based on] some tournaments like the regional CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup and other matches against other teams in Africa.

"It took the former coach Micho a whole campaign to learn the team, and when he embarked on a second AFCON campaign he qualified the team because he had mastered a lot of things including our way of life and cultures," the FA President reasoned.

"Let's just give Desabre all the support and time before we can judge him, but I am happy with the way he has started because his style is very different and the players are adapting well to the changes.

"We cannot down play a scenario where we have played three matches when he is coach and the team has scored five goals and conceded none."

After being appointed as Sredojevic's long-term successor, Desabre oversaw an underwhelming African Nations Championship campaign in which the Cranes were eliminated - winless - in the group stage.

He oversaw a victory over Sao Tome e Principe in a friendly match, before a draw with Malawi and a defeat by Niger.

Uganda were also held at home by Tanzania in a goalless draw during September's international break.

"It's not just about the coach, but we as the FA have improved on several things like the logistics and motivation of the national teams," Magogo added. "This is paying dividends.

"However, we must also recognize the importance of the chartered flight by President Yoweri Museveni which enabled us to travel comfortably and quickly with two games in a space of four days," Magogo concluded.

Desabre followed up his first victory over Lesotho with a 2-0 triumph over the same opponents in Maseru as the East Africans took firm control of their AFCON qualifying group.

They currently have 10 points after four matches, five ahead of Tanzania in second and six clear of third-placed Cape Verde.

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