Rogers Mato wants Uganda to build on their point against Tunisia when Libya visit Hoima City Stadium on Tuesday.
His 68th-minute equaliser earned the Cranes a 1-1 draw at Stade Olympique Hammadi Agrebi in Radès on Thursday night.
Adem Arous had put Tunisia ahead after 12 minutes, before Mato’s second-half goal rescued Uganda’s opening Group H qualifier.
The draw meant more to Mato because Uganda had struggled to take points from Tunisia in previous meetings.
“This means a lot to us, all Ugandans and all the players,” he said after the match.
“If you see the recent meetings, we had not won or got any points against Tunisia, but a point away is a good start.”
Mato’s goal completed Uganda’s recovery, although he felt the Cranes had given themselves an avoidable problem early on.
“Football is a game of mistakes, if you make a mistake, of course they will punish you,” he said.
“We made a mistake in the first half, and I think we were a little bit down for the first 15 minutes.”
Mato praised his teammates for maintaining their concentration after falling behind and continuing to search for an equaliser.
“I want to thank the boys for the concentration, that their heads stayed up, that we went on and pushed ourselves,” Mato said.
“After that, they made a mistake as well. Football is a game of mistakes. One mistake and they score against you.”
Mato believes the qualifiers matter to the Cranes even though their place at AFCON 2027 is already secure.
Uganda qualified automatically as co-hosts, while only one other team from Group H can reach the finals.
“We qualified already, but we have to start on a high note. When we go into the AFCON tournament, we have to be ready,” Mato said.
Mato has already turned his attention to Libya, insisting Uganda cannot spend the coming days celebrating their result in Radès.
“This game now is done,” he said. “We have to focus on the next one. We don’t have to celebrate. It’s done, it’s over. We have to focus on the Libya game 100%.”
Uganda’s next opponents Libya also needed a comeback in their opening qualifier, played earlier on Thursday in Tripoli.
Botswana’s Tumisang Orebonye scored in the 30th and 42nd minutes to give the visitors a 2-0 half-time lead.
Maruwan Alhibeeshi pulled one back for Libya in the 87th minute at 11 June Stadium.
Ezoo El Mariamy then converted a penalty six minutes into stoppage time to secure a 2-2 draw.
Libya’s late response gives Uganda a warning about protecting any lead they establish in Hoima.
Their two first-half concessions against Botswana also leave questions about how they will handle Uganda’s attack.