Mukura Victory Sports head coach Godfroid Okoko has said there were many lessons to learn from the pre-season friendly match against AS Vita Club of DR Congo over the weekend which his side lost 2-0 at Huye Stadium.

The Burundian tactician pointed out that the match was a good test for his team, saying, "despite the loss, we have picked a few lessons from the mistakes we committed. It’s pre-season, and the essence is to learn and pickup match fitness before real business starts.

"Unfortunately, we lost but we were playing against a big and more experienced team. What I wanted is to make sure that my players are confident when they meet a foreign team of such a high caliber,” Okoko noted.

He added that, "Because we have just started pre-season training, our fitness levels are obviously still low. This game has helped to show where we stand in that regard but also to assess our new signings.”

Prior to the game on Saturday, Okoko made it clear the friendly matches will be crucial for his players to prove and show what they’re capable of ahead of the new season which starts next month.

Serbie Alongo netted the opener for Florent Ibenge’s AS Vita Club in the 49th minute before Chico Ikanga made it two a few minutes later.

Former AS Kigali striker Ernest Sugira was one of the nine players who started the game but didn’t return for the second half. The two teams will meet again today in the second game at Huye Stadium.

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