The national football team, Amavubi started intensive preparations after reporting for residential camp at Golden Tulip Hotel on Sunday ahead of their friendly matches against Central Africa next week.

The two friendly matches are part of the team’s preparations for Group E world cup qualifiers against regional neighbors Uganda and Kenya, and Mali.

The friendly matches are scheduled for June 4 and June 7.

Coach Vincent Mashami dropped two goalkeepers include Yves Kimenyi (Kiyovu) and Olivier Kwizera (Rayon Sports) and captain Haruna Niyonzima of Young Africans due to their poor performance in their respective clubs, while Fitina Omborenga and Emmanuel Imanishimwe of APR FC were not selected due to injuries

"No player has a permanent position in the national team, and often when we talk to them I say they don’t have a contract in the national team, which is why they have to give everything to their teams to earn a place in the national team.”

The new faces are goalkeeper Clément Buhake Twizere of Strommen IF in Norway and SC Lyon defender in France, Bryan Clovis Ngwabije who were called up for the first time while St Etienne striker Kevin Monnet Paquet was named in the provisional squad of Amavubi.

Mashami’s side will start their quest for a first World Cup appearance against Mali before hosting Kenya and Uganda in the next two fixtures, respectively. Only the group’s top team is guaranteed a spot into the final phase of the qualifiers.