StarTimes Uganda Premier League
Vipers SC vs KCCA FC
St. Mary’s stadium, Kitende
Saturday, 03-11-2018
KITENDE – Vipers SC and KCCA FC will do battle at the St. Mary’s Stadium in Kitende with both sides eyeing top spot.
The hosts currently sit top of the StarTimes Uganda Premier League and anything other than a loss to their main rivals-KCCA on Saturday, will see Javier Martinez’s side remain peace setters.
For Mike Mutebi’s KCCA, they missed a glorious chance to leap-frog Vipers at the summit when they failed to beat up on Mbarara City in their last outing.
However, they have another shot at top spot if they can somehow grind out three points in Kitende, a venue that they have been struggling at recently.
This is arguably the biggest club game in Ugandan football at the moment as these two clubs have won all of the last six league titles (KCCA 4, Vipers 2). So bragging rights will be up for grabs and may eventually decide the fate of the league title.
What they are saying:
Javier Martinez, Vipers SC head coach.
“We can be disappointed about our result on Tuesday in Jinja.
“I think we deserved more than what we got but a point picked away isn’t bad.
“You cannot change your approach. With or without the ball we are going to try to have a strategy for KCCA FC and play in the way we have been playing.
Mike Mutebi, KCCA FC head coach.
“It is going to be a very good game and i expect goals to be scored.
“The pitch is good so if both sets of players come to play football, then it is going to be a very good closely contested fixtures.
” Vipers has the advantage because they are at home but we are going there to try and win the game.
Team News:
Vipers will still be without suspended Captain Tadeo Lwanga who is serving the second of his two-game suspension. Defender Livingstone Mulondo and goalkeeper Derrick Ochan are also out with injury. However, left-back Aggrey Madoi is back from injury but it remains to be seen if he will feature on Saturday.
For KCCA, they are expected to still be without midfielder Muzamir Mutyaba who also missed their last game at home to Mbarara. Gift Ali is still a long-term absentee.
Match Facts:
This is their 18th meeting since September 2010.
In the past 17, Vipers have won nine with KCCA triumphing on only five occasions. The other three have ended in draws.
KCCA FC have not defeated Vipers away from home since 2010, drawing only twice and losing the other six matches in that period.
Whenever these sides meet, goals fly in. There has only been one goalless draw between them since 2010.
The reverse fixtures last season ended 3-2 in favour of Vipers.
Vipers go into the game unbeaten in any of their previous 22 league encounters (W18 D4). The last time the Venoms lost a league game was in the 2-1 home defeat at the hands of URA in November 2017.
At home, since the loss to URA, the Venoms have won all of their last 11 fixtures, scoring 29 goals and conceding only six in the process.
For KCCA, they also go into the game in fairly impressive form, not tasting defeat in any of their last 10 league fixtures. However, their last defeat was the 3-2 loss away to Vipers on 27-04-2018.
Away from home, the Kasasiro boys have lost only one of their last 10 in the league (W4 D5)
