Wednesday

DR Congo vs Guinea 4pm

The Democratic Republic of Congo will miss the services of striker Heritier Luvumbu against Guinea in their semi-final match of 2016 Africa Nations Championship (CHAN) at Amahoro national stadium.

Head coach Florent Ibenge said the player picked up a knee injury in the 2-1 win over Rwanda on Saturday.

"It is impossible to have him in semi finals, there’s no way he can play against Guinea because he has lots of pain. I got many knocks in the match against Rwanda, but we are slowly recovering and planning for our next game,” Ibenge said.

The coach, however, said that if they qualify for the final, then Luvumbu will have a chance to play the game but so far he will not make it.

Ibenge 58, who led DR Congo to third place at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Equatorial Guinea, added that he is happy with the attitude of his players in CHAN.

"We are not taking things for granted because we have worked hard and the players will remain focused, calm and hungry to win every match,” he noted.

DR Congo are chasing their second CHAN trophy after winning it in 2009 when the first event was held in Cote d’Ivoire. Tunisia and Libya won the 2011 and 2014 events respectively.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw