Uganda defeated ten-man Senegal 1-0 to maintain their chances of moving on to the knock out stage of the CHAN 2022 on Wednesday night.

At the ongoing competition in Algeria, the Cranes’ captain Milton Karisa scored the lone goal to lead his team to win on a chilly and rainy night at the 19 May 1956 Stadium in Annaba.

When Teranga Lions substitute Libasse Ngom was dismissed for a severe foul in the 83rd minute, Teranga Lions’ hopes of regaining parity were dashed.

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This gave Uganda the numerical advantage it needed to hold on and defeat the West African powerhouses.

Before Karisa scored against the flow of play, the Senegalese attackers unleashed a string of attacks on the Uganda defense from the outset of the match.

The Vipers striker received a feed from Kenneth Semakula, and in the 33rd minute, he made an excellent tap-in past Senegal goalkeeper Pape Sy to ignite the Ugandan camp’s celebrations.

In a thrilling half-hour, Milutin Sredojevic’s team had to hold off four Senegalese efforts to score, keeping the Ugandans on their toes while absorbing the pressure before advancing and scoring.

Senegal had a strong start to the game, controlling the majority of the ball. However, the Ugandans absorbed all the pressure, and when Lamine Kamara had a chance to score from a freekick in the 21st minute, his shot went straight into the Ugandan wall.

Frank Ssebufu fouled Moussa Ndiaye in the penalty area during an aerial tackle, and Tunisian referee Mehrez Melki pointed to the spot.

Ousmane Diouf took the opportunity to score from six yards out, but Ugandan goalkeeper Nafian Alionzi, who had a busy evening, stopped his shot to the right corner.

Senegal continued to squander opportunities to score when he was five yards out, but Alionzi once more distinguished himself by blocking the shot.

Despite conceding, Senegal continued attacking Uganda and five minutes later Cheikh Sidibe made a quick run on the left wing but his attempt was picked up by Alionzi as Uganda continued to suck in the pressure from the Senegalese.

Geoffrey Wasswa was at fault for a careless back pass to Alionzi who was compelled to touch the ball with his hand, resulting in Melki receiving a yellow card and a subsequent free kick that came dangerously close to the goal, saving the Ugandans from conceding.

Malick Mbaye of Senegal then produced a beautiful pass from the right to Cheikh Diouf, who forced Alionzi to come off his line in a one-on-one fight, but his shot was off-target despite an empty goal.

Uganda seized on a chance and scored through Karisa to give the Cranes the lead as Senegal continued to control the game’s momentum.

Karisa was hauled down in the area six minutes into the second half; however, despite appearances of a penalty, Melki decided to wave play on after consulting VAR.

Senegal kept up the pressure on Uganda and eventually held 62% of the ball possession.

However, Senegal’s chances of winning began to dwindle after Libasse Ngom was sent off for a dangerous tackle on Abdu Karim Watambala.

With four points, Uganda now leads Group B, followed by Senegal’s three points.

The Local Elephants are at the bottom of the standings, while the Democratic Republic of Congo, which earlier in the day drew with Côte d’Ivoire, is in second place with two points from two games.

Since defeating Burkina Faso 2-1 at the 2014 tournament in South Africa, this is Uganda’s first CHAN triumph.

The Cranes did not have a victory at the CHAN events in 2016, 2018, or 2020.