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Odhiambo: Sofapaka's target against Mathare United is to build on Tusker draw
The Batoto Ba Mungu tactician reveals his plans for the team as they prepare to face the Slum Boys at Wundanyi Stadium
Sofapaka coach Ken Odhiambo has revealed his target when they face Mathare United in an FKF Premier League match is to build on the result they picked against Tusker last weekend.
Batoto ba Mungu snatched a 1-1 draw against the Brewers in the first match under Odhiambo, who had joined the team from Bandari, and the coach now says he will want to build on the result when they take on the Slum Boys at Wundanyi Stadium on Saturday.
“Certainly, yes we want to build on the Tusker draw,” Odhiambo told the club’s website when asked if the Mathare United tie in a must-win encounter. “We will be at home and we want to win since our winning rate hasn’t been good, playing at home comes with its own pressure and we are going for maximum points.
“It’s going to be one entertaining clash against Mathare, they have a good side with some top signings and of course they do play some good football thus they will give us a good test tomorrow [Saturday].”
On how they have prepared for the clash, Odhiambo said: “We’ve had some good preparation towards the match. The players have been pushing themselves out and they show much desire to win.”
On whether the Tusker match is a good confidence builder, the former defender explained: “Definitely yes, we were far in terms of confidence and the Tusker draw was a huge confidence boost. I feel the players are getting back to full confidence and I believe this will help us moving forward.”
Sofapaka have no major injury concerns heading into the clash with only Rwandan defender Isaac Mitima set to miss out. The defender has, however, started light training sessions and should be ready to face Nzoia Sugar in their next match.
In the last five meetings between the two sides, Sofapaka have managed three wins with the other two matches ending in a draw.
The Sofapaka encounter will be the first one for the Slum Boys since they were reinstated by the Sports Disputes Tribunal. Mathare United alongside Zoo FC had been expelled by the FKF over the objection they had against the StarTimes broadcasting deal.
But since the tribunal ruled that the two clubs be reinstated, they have been training in anticipation of their league starts.
Four days after the clash against the Batoto ba Mungu, Mathare United will play Zoo FC before hosting Bandari on January 22, travel to Nakuru, and face Ulinzi Stars on January 27 before concluding the month’s duties with a game against Tusker on January 31.
