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Despite the quality they boast, Uganda's African Nations Championship campaign is threatening to unravel prematurely, with the Cranes facing an uphill struggle to progress from the group after losing their opening fixture against Zambia. Defeat against Chipolopolo in Marrakech in their opener means failure to beat Namibia on January 18th could leave their sustained CHAN participation hanging by a thread. A loss against the Brave Warriors - who beat the Ivory Coast in their opener - would likely spell elimination, something that would represent a dismal return for this talented selection. Yet should Uganda fall at the first hurdle, it would be hard to blame either the players or coach Sebastien Desabre - at least not too wholeheartedly. Indeed, the Cranes' CHAN campaign has arguably been doomed due to FUFA's delay in appointing a successor to Milutin Sredojevic, who ended their near-three-decade wait for an African Cup of Nations appearance by taking the East Africans to Gabon. Yet following Micho's departure in light of unpaid salary, the Ugandan federation took five months to find a replacement. The Serbian left in July, but it wasn't until the end of December - after appearing to toy with the temptation of giving the role to interim boss Moses Basena - that Frenchman Desabre was unveiled. Even though the Frenchman does have a wealth of experience on the continent behind him - albeit never as an international head coach - he was always going to have his work cut out to learn about the home-based Cranes - strengths and weaknesses - and implement his tactical approach.  "It's difficult for a new coach to take charge of a team immediately before a big tournament," he told journalists after the Zambia defeat. "I got the team only 10 days ago, and I'm still discovering the players. "I have a very good feeling with the players, but in 10 days, the first [priority] is tactically, defensively, and I think [against Zambia] we showed our good organisation. "Sure, it's better for a coach to prepare for two months, three months for a tournament like the CHAN," he added. "but we'll adapt in this situation." It's to Desabre's great credit that Uganda looked so coherent - and controlled the game - during the first half an hour against Zambia, and they'll surely regret not taking the lead. However, after the break - once Derrick Nsibambi's sumptuous scissors-kick had cancelled out Lazarous Nambole's opener - they appeared to lack an offensive coherency. Allan Kyambadde and Muzamiru Mutyaba were anonymous, appearing out of sync with their teammates, and Milton Karisa on the right side was one of the team's few bright sparks as Zambia began to impose themselves. Desabre perhaps deserves criticism for his substitutions - notably the wait to introduce Nelson Senkatuka - and it would have been fascinating to see how the speed and flair of Paul Mucureezi on the right flank would have troubled Zambia's Fackson Kapumbu.  Instead, Senkatuka - a centre forward by trade - was handed a role on the right side. He battled manfully, but isn't a natural fit in this role. Any hopes Desabre had of introducing wonderkid Muhammad Shaban from the off against Namibia took a hit with the news on Wednesday that the CECAFA U-20 hero was forced to sit out of training, and it remains to be seen whether he will be able to compete against Namibia. The Brave Warriors - a familiar and well-organised unit under Ricardo Mannetti - will fancy their chances of another upset on Thursday, although Uganda do have reasons for encouragement. Certainly, Desabre appeared encouraged by some of his team's qualities demonstrated in defeat against Chipolopolo. "I'll tell the players that we still have two matches and we have to win them both to qualify," he continued. "We have quality in possession, and now we have to pick ourselves up." The Cranes and their new coach will also have learned a great deal about each other during the 90 minutes against Zambia and the time on the training field should ensure that there's improvement by the time they retake the pitch in Marrakech. However, Desabre's tacit desire to cast the CHAN primarily as a learning exercise ahead of the 2019 AFCON qualifiers - rather than an opportunity for this exciting side to win some silverware - represents a reasonable calibration of expectation considering the delay in appointing him and a telling acknowledgement on his part. "It's nice for me because I can evaluate the players in this competition for the next step," the coach concluded "for AFCON qualification, and for the next [qualifiers] against Tanzania and Lesotho." If Uganda do struggle against Namibia, and fail to escape the group, then it's FUFA's dawdlers - and not the travelling party in Morocco - who ought to take the blame.
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