2025 AFCON qualifiers: Uganda complete double over South Sudan

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 AFCON 2025 QUALIFICATION 

 TUESDAY RESULTS 
🇸🇸 SOUTH SUDAN 1-2 UGANDA 🇺🇬
🇨🇬 CONGO-BRAZZAVILLE 1-1 SOUTH AFRICA 🇿🇦

Denis Omedi scored his second goal of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification campaign as Uganda beat South Sudan 2-1 in Juba on Tuesday (October 15) to inch closer to securing a place in next year's finals.

Later the same day, South Africa were held 1-1 by Congo-Brazzaville to ensure that no team in Group K could confirm progression to the Africa Cup of Nations finals yet, with two rounds of group games remaining.

After Uganda had completed a double over South Sudan in the earlier kickoff, a South African win would have sealed qualification for both The Cranes and Bafana Bafana, but Hugo Broos' men were frustrated by a team they had thrashed 5-0 in the reverse fixture only four days prior.

Tuesday's two sets of results mean that unbeaten Uganda climb back to the summit of the group on 10 points while South Africa, also yet to taste defeat in this qualification campaign, drop to second place on eight points.

Congo-Brazzaville are third on four points, with their draw against the South Africans keeping them still in contention mathematically.

South Sudan, who have lost all their four games played so far, anchor the log.

 GROUP K STANDINGS 

Uganda to host SA, then away vs Congo

For now, three teams can still advance.

Realistically though, with two group games left for each team, Uganda and South Africa remain the firm favourites to qualify in this six-round competition that will produce 23 qualifiers to join hosts Morocco.

Next up, Uganda will host South Africa on November 10, before wrapping up their qualification campaign on the road against Congo-Brazzaville eight days later on November 18, the same day the South Africans will host South Sudan.

Congo-Brazzaville will be hosted by South Sudan in their penultimate group game on November 10, before themselves hosting Uganda.

Uganda need only a point from their last two games to qualify for AFCON, having last featured at the finals of Africa's flagship football tournament in 2019.

▪️  Uganda beat S.Sudan to edge closer to AFCON 2025 finals

The Cranes' head coach, Paul Put, will now breathe much easier after seeing his side complete a double over their northern neighbours in a double-header played in the space of four days.

The Belgian tactician made three changes to the team that started in last Friday's 1-0 win over South Sudan.

Ronald Ssekiganda, Travis Mutyaba  and Jude Ssemugabi dropped to the bench while Taddeo Lwanga, Allan Okello and Derrick Nsibambi started in Juba.

In sharp contrast to the opening half at Namboole Stadium that was starved of the breakthrough, this time around, The Cranes broke the deadlock 15 minutes into the game with a well-worked finish by Omedi — a result of neat and fluid passage of the ball on the right flank that saw Allan Okello the provider of the assist.

But it did not take the hosts long to claw back into this one.

Six minutes after Uganda's goal, South Sudan's marauding front three men charged into The Cranes' half with deft passes that ended with Yohanna Paulino Juma beating visiting goalkeeper Ismael Watenga — who was off his line — with a long-range curler into the top right corner.

Halfway into the second half, the Ugandans' lead got restored, thanks to an own-goal by Alfred Leku, to lock in the visitors' victory.

The attention shifted to the 7pm kickoff, but a draw result from that one put Ugandan and South African early celebrations of progression on hold as the wait continues for another four weeks.

Uganda's goal scorers

Uganda's seven goals scored thus far in this qualification campaign have been scored by five different Ugandans and one South Sudanese (own goal).

Denis Omedi and Rogers Mato both found the back of the net in Uganda's opener against South Africa in a 2-2 result on September 6.

Three days later (September 9), Aziz Kayondo and Jude Ssemugabi scored as hosts Uganda brushed aside Congo-Brazzaville in a 2-0 result at Namboole Stadium.

A month later, on October 11, Bevis Mugabi lifted the Cranes' goals tally to five with his winner against a battling South Sudan in Kampala.

In the reverse fixture in South Sudan's capital Juba four days later (October 15), Denis Omedi opened the scoring with his second goal of this campaign, which doubled as Uganda's sixth of the competition. South Sudanese Alfred Leku scored the winning own goal for Uganda in a 2-1 result.