Micho: I’m coming back to my African football home

Micho Sredojevic will face Uganda for the first time ever when the Serbian leads his new national side, the Chipolopolo of Zambia, in a Pre-Chan Tri-Nations Invitational tournament to be held in Kampala this month.
The competition is part of Uganda Cranes preparations for the 2020 African Nations Championship (Chan) finals due in Cameroon next month.
It will be held at Namboole from March 17 to 21. Hosts Uganda, West Africans Mali - also drawn with the Cranes in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, and Zambia are the participating teams.
But one headline will be the return of Micho, whose name is indelibly marked in Uganda’s history having ended the country’s four-decade absence at the Nations Cup finals with Gabon 2017 presence.
“Coming back to Uganda is always an emotional return to my African football home,” the Serbian told Daily Monitor yesterday. “Uganda is the place with all the happiness that we have produced in 39 years after we’ve qualified for Africa Cup of Nations.
“If I have been biologically born in Serbia, I can, with pride, say that Uganda has given me football birth in African football.
“So with the highest degree of respect to everyone, I’m coming back to Uganda on a mission and happy that two of my personal friends Sebastian Desabre have continued the mission that I have been in.
“Also my personal friend Jonathan McKinstry is continuing the good job.”
Micho, who first coached at SC Villa early 2000s, winning four league titles there, continued: “Therefore coming back to Uganda I do not visit Uganda, I go back to my African football home.
“And putting emotions aside, I’m coming as a sport opponent and looking forward to catch the spirit of Namboole that meant so much to me.”
Since Micho’s dramatic departure later in 2017, Frenchman Desabre has managed the Cranes, taking them to the last 16 last year (Afcon teams increased from 16 to 24 from that edition).
Northern Irishman McKinstry is now in charge and has started on the right note, picking four points in the first two 2021 Afcon qualifying games.
In this Three-Nations friendly tournament, it will be a reunion of two coaches that know each other very well, both having coached in Rwanda and Uganda.
McKinstry is looking forward. “Zambia is a good team and the fact that they are under coach Milutin Sredojevic, they will definitely give us a good test,” said McKinstry.
“I believe this tournament will help us to gauge our standards. We hope to gain a lot from the games against Mali and Zambia.
“Mali is (also) one of the teams with a good squad; they have hugely invested in youth football.”
McKinstry named a provisional team 34-man squad that entered camp yesterday. They officially start training today at Gems Cambridge International School.
Uganda are optimistic they will end their Chan group stage jinx in a pool that includes Rwanda, defending champions Morocco and Togo.