Uganda Cranes coach Jonathan McKinstry says that he will not put “pressure” on youngster Karim Watambala.
Watambala is one of the seven local based players in Cranes team preparing to face South Sudan in a double header.
The Northern Irishman has heaped praise on Vipers midfielder.
“Some of the reasons we were attracted to Karim is that he plays with great intensity, Karim attracts everyone’s eye because he does everything with force and positivity. He is really hungry to learn and improve. We have worked with him for the past six months and he gas made step by step progress,” McKinstry told FUFA media.
“He is still young who will make mistakes but in general he is moving in the right direction. There’s no doubt that he deserves to be in the squad and I also think he can learn so much because of the exposure with the experienced players like Khalid Aucho, Mike Azira, Emmanuel Okwi from whom he can learn so much from them and that can help him improve further.
“We can’t put much pressure on Karim (Watambala) because he is still young. I have worked with young players of Karim’s age and helped their transition to professional games. We have to be patient, supportive and understand that he will make mistakes thus help and guide him through.”
The youngster was one of Vipers best players last season as the Venoms won the league title.
He studied at Town view Primary School in Mbale and St John’s SS Mukono before joining St Mary’s kitende where has since graduated to Vipers senior team.
