Thursday

Musanze Vs APR

Monday

APR 6-0 Amagaju

APR head coach Ljubomir ‘Ljupko’ Petrovic has encouraged his players to remain ‘grounded and focused’ after mauling Amagaju

The military side thrashed struggling Amagaju 6-0 on Monday at Kigali Stadium.

Muhadjir Hakizimana, Onesme Twagizimana, Issa Bigirimana and Maxime Sekamana were all on target.  

After the Amagaju rout, APR stormed the summit of the Azam Rwanda Premier League with 47 points, with Petrovic praising his players’ performance but also warning that the wheels could quickly come off if they lost focus.

"The whole team worked very hard for the win, every player gave it their best and, the goal

keeper was excellent and deserved the clean-sheet.

"This is the kind of determination we need to win the league. We have to build consistency from now to the end of the season,” the Serbian told Times Sport.

He singled out Andrew Buteera and Bizimana for having had a big impact on the game.

After several attempts and fantastic saves from goalie Pacifique Twagizimana, former Mukura superstar Hakizimana finally broke the deadlock in the 41st minute with a screamer from 25 yards.

In the 60th minute, Bizimana’s effort hit the crossbar before Sekamana, who came off the bench to replace youngster Lague Byiringiro, doubled the lead five minutes later.

Bigirimana then scored in the 73rd minute to make it 3-0, before Sekamana scored his second goal and APR’s fourth on the night in the 81st minute.

Twizerimana made it 5-0 with three minutes to play, while Amagaju  defender Emmanuel Nzabahimana scored conceded an own goal as he tried to clear Jean Claude Iranzi’s corner in the 92nd minute.

After enduring the heavy defeat, Amagaju head coach Sosthene Habimana said: "This is very disappointing but at the same time we have learned. We need to work on our weaknesses so we can do better in the remaining fixtures.”

APR return to action on Thursday away to Musanze before hosting Gicumbi on Saturday.

Meanwhile, AS Kigali stumbled in the title race after they were walloped 4-1 by third-placed SC Kiyovu at Mumena stadium. The loss means that AS Kigali remain in second spot, two points adrift of APR.  

editorial@newtimes.co.rw