Rwanda head coach Adel Amrouche has handed debut call-ups to left-back Aly Enzo Hamon of French fourth tier side Angouleme CFC, Luton Town U18 defensive midfielder Claude Smith Kayibanda and FC Dender of Belgium centre back Darryl Nganji Nkulikiyimana in his squad for the FIFA international friendly match against Algeria in Blida on June 9. Amrouche selected his 27-man squad on Wednesday, May 28, to start preparations for the game against the Desert Foxes as part of Rwanda's outings prior to September's 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria and Zimbabwe. Returning to the squad is Namugo FC veteran striker Meddie Kagere who last played for Amavubi on September 23, 2022 in a 0-0 international friendly draw with Equatorial Guinea. ALSO READ: Adel Amrouche named Rwanda head coach Mbungo keeps Womens team job Centre back Bryan Ngwabije, who hasn't played for Rwanda since June 4, 2021, and US-based right-back Noe Uwimana are also back in the squad. The latter last had his call up under previous coach Carlos Alos. Familiar faces in Amavubi such as Jojea Kwizera, Fiacre Ntwari, skipper Djihad Bizimana, Bonheur Mugisha and others are all in the team for the game. In total, nine out of the 27 players selected play in the Rwanda Premier League while other 18 play abroad. Meanwhile, the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) last week announced that they will use their local team against Rwanda as an opportunity to help them prepare for the 2025 CHAN. Algeria are paired in Group C in CHAN 2025 alongside South Africa, Uganda, Niger, and Guinea.
