Rayon Sports head coach Brazilian Roberto Oliveira Goncalves de Calmo has urged his players to stay focused as the eight-time Rwandan champions attempt to win their first Cecafa title in twenty years.
The Brazilian coach fired the warning to his players on Friday after advancing to the quarter-finals of the 41st CECAFA Kagame Cup in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
However, Goncalves also praised the players for the determination and hard work they exhibited in their final Group B game against Burundi's Lydia Ludic, which they won 3-1 thanks to goals from Abdul Rwatubyaye, Kevin Muhire and skipper Pierrot Kwizera.
"We missed a lot of scoring opportunities, the score-line could have gone as high as 6-1 or more. But what is important right now is that we are through to knock-out stages. We have to be more focused, one game at a time," the former Brazilian international said.
"I have to appreciate these players, they have given everything and I am convinced they are good enough to win this competition," he further explained.
Quarter-finals get underway today with Kenyan giants Gor Mahia taking on Uganda's Vipers SC in the first clash before home side Simba SC face AS Ports.
Action will continue on Monday when Group A leaders Azam FC face-off with Rayon Sports who finished second in Group B.
In another quarter-final encounter on Monday, hopefuls Singida United from Tanzania will be up against Zanzibar's JKU who qualified for knock-outs stage as Group A second runners-up.
After the group stages, Rayon Sports star playmaker Kwizera is among the two joint top scorers with three goals each, alongside Azam FC forward Iddi Shaabani.
Rayon Sports and Gor Mahia finished joint top in Group B with five points each, same number of goals scored and goals conceded to book quarter-final slots.
To determined Group B leaders, CECAFA used a FIFA Play Tie-breaker rule which saw Gor Mahia top the standings thanks to their 4 yellow cards accumulated in the group stage compared to Rayon Sports' five yellow cards.
Today
Gor Mahia Vs Vipers
Simba SC Vs AS Ports
Monday
Azam Vs Rayon
Singida Utd Vs JKU
