Uganda Cranes head coach Paul Put's first perusal and review of the new faces on the team

Uganda Cranes in training|FUFA IMAGE

Uganda Cranes head coach Paul Put's first perusal and review of the new faces on the team

Allan Damba • 08:57 - 19.03.2024

"They (new players) played on Saturday and Sunday, and they traveled, so it has to be a little bit slowed down," Put added.

Uganda Cranes head coach Paul Joseph Put has underlined that the newly inducted players will need a bit of time to gel with the rest of the team.

For their friendly matches against Comoros and Ghana, Uganda summoned three fresh faces including Hearts's Toby Sibbick, Charlton's Nathan Asiimwe and Athlone's Carl James Mujaguzi.

Uganda Cranes Technical Team in Morocco|FUFA IMAGE

Goalkeeper Giosue Bellagambi, a Huddersfield player, was also called up and is in line for only his second game in  Uganda Cranes colours.

His debut came way back in 2022 as Uganda and Libya played out a barren stalemate.

"We have a lot of new players, and you can see they are not used to playing to each other," Put said after the first training session at the Grand Stade de Marrakech Training Ground.

"This is just the first training. I think they were a bit tired in the end, so its obviously difficult because its the first day."

"I was used to players I've known in the games against Guinea, Somalia and Kuwait," he conceded.

"They (new players) played on Saturday and Sunday, and they traveled, so it has to be a little bit slowed down," Put added.

"But we also don't have time, we have games coming up, so we pushed a little more, but I'm sure these players can bring something."

After Friday's showdown with Comoros, Uganda will play a star-studden Ghana next Tuesday in Morocco.