Rwanda welcome Djibouti at Amahoro Stadium in a 2025 CHAN Qualifier second leg game on Thursday, October 31.
Djibouti host the first leg in Kigali as their home ground doesn’t meet CAF and FIFA standards to host international football matches.
They beat Amavubi 1-0 at the time, courtesy a 79th minute winner from striker Gabriel Abeiku Dadzie.
In all, this is going to be the third meeting between the two teams since 2007. Before losing 1-0 on Sunday, Djibouti had suffered a 9-0 humiliation at the hands of Rwanda in an international friendly held on December 12, 2007.
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Djibouti are not the same side of the 2000s.
Amavubi skipper Kevin Muhire admits they messed up in the first leg but he assured Rwandans that he and his teammates have now rectified all the errors enough to win the second leg and eliminate Djibouti at any cost.
"We&039;re prepared well for the second leg. The first game was a mistake, we had a good practice but didn't the get chance to win. Now, we know this is like a second chance to fix everything," Muhire told the press ahead of the game.
"For us, we want to win every game but sometimes we lose and that's football. There are ups and downs but we are well prepared."
On the part of Djibouti, they might make some changes to their starting lineup from the first leg. Long-haired Hoch Gedo who had a great game when he came on in the second half may secure a starting berth in the midfield.
They also have Dadzie, Hussein Hassan and a couple of talented players that Frank Spittler’s men should keep a keen eye on as they can decide the game with individual moment of brilliance.
The German coach is also expected to make some key changes to his team. Gilbert Mugisha, who start on the bench in the first leg, as well as new addition Onesme Twizerimana may start in attack to add more bite to the attack.
Rwanda start the game as favorites but they have to eschew complacency if they are to overturn the 1-0 deficit and qualify.