Rwanda Football Federation (Ferwafa) has confirmed that the national team, Amavubi, will play two international friendly matches against Sudan, between November 17 and November 19, at Kigali Stadium.

As reported, Amavubi head coach will name a squad after the ninth day of the Rwanda Premier League.

Amavubi head coach Carlos Alos Ferrer’s quest to qualify for the 2023 AFCON has encountered some challenges. The team previously lost to Senegal and drew against Mozambique.

The Secretary General of the Rwanda Football Federation, Henry Muhire, said: "We need to make sure that the Amavubi squad is good enough to compete with the best on the continent. And playing against Sudan will help us know how good the team is ahead of the matches we have ahead of us.”

"I hope these two matches will help in preparing our national team for the upcoming matches as well as keeping the players in good shape.”

"It will be great for the team and it is good to play two international friendlies. Sudan is a good side and I hope they will help us. We need to keep our team competitive as we continue to plan for the upcoming Caf qualifiers,” added Muhire.

In upcoming fixtures, Rwanda will play return games against Senegal and Mozambique, and then two matches against Benin.

Should, against all odds, Amavubi pull it off and qualify, the country will have ended a 17-year wait to return to the continent’s biggest football showpiece.

In the last two warm-up matches, Rwanda played a goalless draw against Guinea Equatorial, while they lost 3-1 to Saint Eloi Lupopo of DR Congo.