AS Kigali head coach Andre Casa Mbungo has urged his players to think beyond the first preliminary round of the CAF Confederation Cup if they want to achieve anything tangible on the continent at club and country levels.

AS Kigali intensified preparations ahead of their respective first-leg encounters in the preliminary stage of continental football, on September 10.

They will visit ASAS Djibouti Télécom of Djibouti on September 10. The return leg will be played on September, 18, while APR will host Tunisia’s US Monastir in the Champions League, on the same day, in Kigali.

Coach Andre Casa Mbungo is confident they will go past ASAS Djibouti Télécom, a side that humiliated and dumped them out of the competition seven years ago.

"We have always relied on winning away games, and the first leg will be no different. It’s a must-win clash if we are to progress to the next round. That is what we will be fighting for,” Mbungo said.

Rayon Sports are the only Rwandan club that ever reached the group stages in the Caf Confederation, in 2018. But the AS Kigali coach believes it is possible to break that jinx.

"We need to give serious consideration to these competitions because we can gain a lot from playing against bigger teams. We are working hard so that we are better prepared the next time we return to the big stage,” he said.

Mbungo selected 20 players ahead of the match.