McKinstry furious at Mamelodi Sundowns as Onyango misses Uganda camp

Uganda coach Jonathan McKinstry has hit out at Mamelodi Sundowns after the club reportedly refused to grant keeper Denis Onyango a chance to train with the national team in Dubai.

The skipper was among the players named in the squad for the nine-day training camp in Dubai but according to McKinstry, he was denied the chance to link up with the rest of the squad by the South African champions.

A statement published on the Federation of Uganda Football Association (Fufa) official website has stated: "Uganda coach Jonathan McKinstry is disappointed captain Dennis Onyango will not be part of the team’s training camp in Dubai.

“The captain was stopped from joining the rest of the team in camp with his club Mamelodi Sundowns in South Africa citing several reasons.”

McKinstry has also issued a separate statement showing his frustration at the decision by Sundowns to deny the player the chance to train with the Cranes.

“We are very disappointed in Mamelodi Sundowns' position regarding not releasing Denis Onyango for international duty during the October 2020 Fifa dates," explained McKinstry.

“Whilst they have released other team members for international duty for their respective nations; they communicated to us on Monday of this week [two weeks after receiving notification of invitation for the player] they wished to keep Denis Onyango with them on the basis that he would have to quarantine upon return to South Africa.

“As a national team, we have been clear we would not call players to this camp who would have to quarantine on return to their respective clubs. [Eg. Players based in Israel and USA].

“We asked Sundowns for evidence of the regulation regarding quarantine, and they were only able to provide information regarding tourists arriving in South Africa, and not residents as is the case for Onyango.

“Upon further checking on our side, the SA Government position would appear clear regarding any potential quarantine in that: Exceptions exist for business travellers with rare and critical skills, diplomats, investors, repatriated individuals, and professional athletes.”

The statement continued: “Despite all of this, and direct dialogue between myself [Head Coach], our national team's officer and staff from Sundowns, their position has remained the same.

“At this point, we must continue on with the camp so we maximise the benefit to all other members of the team.

“We would like to state however that Denis Onyango has always been eager to join us in Dubai and we feel he has been put in a very difficult position by his employers. As such we attach no blame in this situation to the player who remains a key part of our plans for Afcon 2022 and World Cup 2022 qualification.

“Mamelodi Sundowns are one of the leading clubs in Africa, and this situation, in our opinion differs greatly from the levels of professionalism we have come to expect from them over the years.”

Derrick Nsibambi, who turns out for Smouha FC in Egypt, is another foreign player who missed the training camp in Dubai.