Guinea and Uganda meet at the Stade Municipal de Berkane on Friday to begin their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.
Group G includes both countries, along with Somalia, Botswana, Mozambique, the 2015 COSAFA Cup runners-up, and Algeria, the two-time Africa Cup of Nations winners.
On October 17, Guinea's annual friendly program came to an end at the Estadio Algarve as they were held to a dismal 1-1 draw by Gabon.
Serhou Guirassy of Stuttgart scored again to give the Syli National the lead in the 36th minute, but two minutes beyond the hour, Aaron-Salem Boupendza equalized from the penalty spot.
After two wins and a tie in their previous three games, Guinea is now unbeaten. On September 9, they drew 2-2 with Malawi in their final Africa Cup of Nations qualification match.
Kaba Diawara's team finished second in Group D with 10 points from six games, despite the draw against the Flames. This will be their third consecutive trip to the AFCON after they were eliminated in 2017.
When Guinea plays a team that they have not lost to in five of their previous seven meetings—winning three and drawing two—they will be betting on themselves to have an incredible start to the World Cup qualifying campaign on Thursday.
However, on October 17, Uganda was defeated 3-0 by Zambia at the Al Hamriya Sports Club Stadium, sealing their fate for a second straight friendly loss.
Following a 1-0 defeat to Mali four days prior, the Cranes were unable to recover as Zambia easily defeated them thanks to goals from Leicester City player Patson Daka twice and Fashion Sakala in the 63rd minute.
Prior to these two friendlies, Uganda defeated Niger 2-0 at the Stade de Marrakech on September 7 to conclude their 2023 AFCON qualifying campaign.
Paul Put's team, however, finished third in Group F with seven points after winning just one of their first five games, failing to secure a spot in the continental championship for the first time since 2019.
Uganda enters Thursday's opening group match having lost four of their last five games in all competitions, giving up seven goals and only managing to keep one clean sheet since March.
But they have won four and drawn one of their five competitive road games since August 2022, going undefeated in the process. They will be putting their best foot forward to continue this remarkable run as they attempt to start their quest for a maiden World Cup berth on the correct track.
