Pinto: Ruaraka Ground a struggle for technical Gor Mahia players against Mathare United

Gor Mahia head coach Carlos Manuel Vaz Pinto concedes Mathare United made it tough for his team in the Football Kenya Federation Premier League assignment on Wednesday since they were fresh as opposed to his team.

In the match played at Ruaraka Grounds, K’Ogalo benefited from an-own goal after the ‘Slum Boys’ defender Lennox Ogutu directed a left-footed cross from Alpha Onyango into his own net to hand the champions a sixth straight win in a row.

But the tactician concedes it was not easy because also the pitch contributed to the struggles of the reigning champions.

"Always a tough match because [Mathare] were fresh; their last game was three weeks ago while our last match was three days ago which is totally different," the Portuguese tactician told Goal.

"And of course this type of ground gives an advantage to Mathare, because our players, of course, have more technique but we deserved to win because we controlled the game despite not creating many scoring opportunities but I think we were better than them."

"The win kept Gor Mahia in fourth spot on the 18-team table with 34 points from 18 matches while KCB, who beat Bidco United 1-0, displaced Tusker from the top on 39 points from 19 outings.  

Gor are now on course to win a double as they are also in the final of the Shield Cup where they will face rivals AFC Leopards on July 4. 

"We will fight, game by game, and I believe it is true we can win the league but we have other teams like Tusker, AFC Leopards, KCB, and [Kariobangi] Sharks who can win as well because the difference is not big," Pinto continued.

"Initially, the gap between us and the top team was 16 points, but it is five right now with one game in hand and because of that I believe we have the advantage. 

"But our focus is on the next game because we take it game by game and we are here to fight. It is not easy playing a game after three days but we are giving our best."