Denis Onyango set for rare run of four Uganda appearances during international break

The latest FIFA international window could give Denis Onyango four consecutive matches for Uganda in 10 days, a run of appearances that has become highly unusual for the veteran goalkeeper at Mamelodi Sundowns.

Onyango has not played for Sundowns this season and has not featured for the club since February. However, the 41-year-old has already started Uganda’s matches against Tunisia and Libya in the past seven days.

He could add two more appearances when Uganda face DR Congo at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Friday and again on Monday, both in friendly fixtures.

That would give Onyango four successive matches in less than two weeks, a sequence that is difficult to imagine at club level given his position in the Sundowns goalkeeping hierarchy.

The Uganda captain is behind Bafana Bafana internationals Ronwen Williams and Ricardo Goss at Chloorkop, while Reyaad Pieterse is also competing for a place.

A rare run of club appearances

Onyango’s most recent extended spell of consecutive matches for Sundowns came at the beginning of the 2021/22 season, when he played nine games in a row.

Williams then arrived at Chloorkop the following season, and Onyango’s opportunities became more sporadic, particularly when it came to starting matches consecutively.

His sequence last season reached only two games, when he played against Sekhukhune United and Al Hilal in January. In the 2024/25 campaign, he appeared in three successive matches against Stellenbosch, AmaZulu and Richards Bay in December 2024.

There was no comparable run of consecutive appearances during the 2022/23 or 2023/24 seasons. He has also yet to play for Sundowns during the current term.

By contrast, Onyango played twice at the AFCON finals last December, only three months after reversing his decision to retire from international football.

Uganda are already qualified for the AFCON finals as co-hosts and are using their qualifiers and friendly matches to prepare for the tournament. That schedule has provided Onyango with a run of football that has been largely unavailable to him at Sundowns.

The Ugandan delegation is based in Pretoria after making a short flight across the Limpopo River from Zimbabwe, where the team played on Monday.

The two matches against DR Congo will take place at FNB Stadium, offering Onyango the chance to complete an unusual four-game sequence on familiar territory. For a goalkeeper whose club appearances have been increasingly limited, the international break has brought an unexpected opportunity for regular football.