Amavubi once again failed to sting when it mattered most as they lost 2-0 to the Mambas of Mozambique in a 2023 AFCON Group L qualifier on Sunday at Huye Stadium.
Prior to the game, Carlos Ferrer and his men promised to bring smiles back to the faces of their fans but they could not glitter as Mozambique picked up an important win which ended the country’s AFCON qualification hopes.
Times Sport takes a look at six things we learnt from the game.
Poor selection
From the onset, one could easily see that coach Carlos Alos Ferrer and his assistants got the selection wrong.
Rwanda began the match without a recognized typical striker but chose to play four number 10s.
Muhadjiri Hakizimana, Hakim Sahabo, Innocent Nshuti and Gilbert Mugisha are all number 10s. Rwanda didn't have a number 9 on the field as Patrick Mutsinzi and Didier Mugisha were benched while they were ready for the service.
Teenager Hakim Sahabo was left at sea as his area of operation also had Hakizimana, Mugisha, and Nshuti.
Inadequate preparation
Good preparation is very key for important games like this. Rwanda were too relaxed thinking that beating Mozambique was a done deal. The team had no buildup games and Ferrer did not have time to see if the players could jell.
Before the away game against Benin, Amavubi played a friendly game against Ethiopia from which all the wrongs were corrected. That game with the Cheetahs is arguably Rwanda's best output in the qualifiers even when they were down with ten men after Hakim Sahabo was sent off.
Mozambique played a friendly with Malawi which ended 1-1 on Wednesday and Chiquinho Conde used the opportunity to sharpen the rough edges in his team.
No system of play
Rwanda had no system of play on Sunday at the Huye Stadium despite enjoying great possession.
No one could determine whether the team was playing 4-2-3-1, 4-3-3, 4-4-2 etc.
The players enjoyed just moving the ball around but with no clear purpose of what they would use it for. Mozambique, on the other hand, were very direct and scored twice from the four chances they created.
Chiquinho orchestrated Mozambique masterclass
From the play of the Mambas, one could easily see it was a well-rehearsed pattern. They just allowed Rwanda to enjoy possession only to hit them on the counter with the likes of Dominguez, Geny Catamo and Stanley Ratifo.
The three players were torn in the flesh of Rwanda and they did the job for the Mambas.
Mozambique registered an important result in Huye but credit goes to coach Conde who served as the brain of the performance that his team produced on the road.
Amavubi only feel home away from home
Unlike previous years that Amavubi were very poor in away games, they started the 2023 AFCON qualification campaign brightly despite playing three away games in a row.
They recorded two draws and fell to a 1-0 narrow defeat to African champions Senegal in Dakar through a 95th minute penalty from Sadio Mane.
With this, everyone thought the time had come for the team to make it to the AFCON again counting home advantage as their lucky card.
They then struggled in a home game against Benin in Kigali as they shared the spoils before all the three points were awarded to Benin as Rwanda fielded an unqualified player.
And, in a game that was touted as a ‘do or die’ on Sunday, Mozambique won it at ease to leave Ferrer and his men’s heads down and celebrate the victory before the home fans.
Fans feel like they were let down
It had been a year since Rwanda played at Huye Stadium and the fans were there in big numbers to support the team.
They were, however, left dejected as the team failed to capitalize the home advantage to get the result that could have kept them in contention for a ticket to the AFCON finals in Cote d’Ivoire.
It was another day of agony for Amavubi fans as the national team failed to deliver once again.