Mukura host APR with more than ‘just three points’ at stake

Wednesday Mukura Vs APR 15:30 Sunrise Vs AS Kigali 15:30 Mukura Victory Sports will be hoping to make the most of home advantage when they host leaders and defending champions APR at Huye Stadium on Wednesday. The two Azam Rwanda Premier League rivals go head-to-head with more than just three points at stake as Mukura seek to inflict second successive defeat on APR this season, while the latter will be keen on an away win to tighten their grip on top spot as the title race reaches critical stage. Victory for the hosts will see them up to second position with 47 points, one adrift of APR, while a win for the military side would crush Mukura’s title prospects as the Huye-based bid for a historic first league title. The black-and-yellow outfit beat APR 1-0 in the first-leg at Kigali Stadium in January. Talking to Times Sport on Tuesday, Mukura head coach Francis Haringingo urged his players to ‘be ruthless’ in front of goal and waste no chances when they take on the record 17-time champions. He said that, “This is a big game. It finds APR in good position as table leaders, but it balances out because we are also the hosts. I believe it is going to be a massive clash.” “The third spot is not bad, but we need to improve. The target is to get maximum points from each of our remaining so we can move up the table, and hopefully win the league.” Haringingo added. It will be the second time that Mukura forwards Onesme Twizerimana and Bertrand Iradukunda face their former club in what promises to be a an exciting clash between two teams that love to hate each other. “Our game with APR is one of the biggest in the country, and we have prepared accordingly. We needed the break to rectify a few mistakes in training and now I feel we’re ready physically and mentally,” Burundi-born tactician Haringingo further noted. Mukura and APR have not played a single game in the last two weeks as some players from both sides were part of the national team (Amavubi) that lost 3-0 to Ivory Coast in AFCON 2019 qualifiers in Abidjan over the weekend. His counterpart, Zlatko Krmpotić, admits they expect a tough challenge from a side that is desperate for points, but his team will leave nothing to chance. “I have not ruled them out of the title race, and certainly they can recover anytime, so we must be careful in our defending and efficient in the attack,” noted Serbian coach Krmpotić. “We are facing a resilient Mukura team, but we need to win as much as they do. So it’s going to be tough game on both sides.” Table No Team PG W D L PTS 1 APR 20 15 03 02 48 2 Rayon 20 14 02 04 44 3 Mukura 20 13 05 02 44 4 Kiyovu 20 10 05 05 35 5 Policec 22 10 04 08 34 6 Espoir 22 09 04 09 31 7 Muhanga 21 07 07 07 28 8 AS Kigali 20 07 06 07 27 9 Sunrise 20 07 05 08 26 10 Marines 22 06 08 08 26 11 Etincelles 22 07 03 12 24 12 Bugesera 21 05 09 07 24 13 Musanze 21 06 05 09 23 14 Gicumbi 22 05 05 12 20 15 Kirehe 22 03 08 11 17 16 Amagaju 22 04 03 15 15 editor@newtimesrwanda.com