‘Zico’ returns to haunt K’Ogalo

Gor Mahia will draw inspiration from their fairytale run at the City Stadium when they face Sony Sugar in the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) on Sunday.

Gor last lost a match at the venue a year ago and Sunday’s meeting serves up interesting contrasts.

A year ago, Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno, then Gor’s coach, watched in disbelief as Congo United’s Rama Salim curled in a decisive free-kick that silenced K’Ogalo 2-1, effectively ending his reign at the club as he fled from irate fans baying for his blood.

A year later, Otieno returns to the same venue but on a different technical bench as he leads Sony Sugar against his former employers.

Technical bench

A lot has changed since then. Salim has moved to Gor and when Sony meet K’Ogalo, it will be more than just a league match game. It will be a reunion of sorts.

In Sony’s squad are several former Gor Mahia players who have been kicked out of the club by the new technical bench and ‘Zico’ himself will be up against a team he played for in his hey days and won titles with before returning as team coach.

Gor are third in the KPL and are enjoying a good run, having gone 12 league games unbeaten since losing to Ulinzi Stars on April 14 in Nakuru.

Title hopes

Sony Sugar stand on K’Ogalo’s way tomorrow and coach ‘Zico’ knows if his side collects at least a point, Gor’s title ambitions will have been dealt a major blow.

A win will ensure Gor remain firmly in the title race after hauling themselves off the relegation zone at the start of the season.

The two teams played to a barren draw in the first leg in Nakuru, a result that prompted K’Ogalo management to look overseas in search of a solution to the team’s problems in the technical bench.

Since coach Zdravko Logarusic took over at Gor, the club’s fortunes have been revived, with the team going 12 games unbeaten.

The team has moved from the bottom three where they were when they last played Sony to third in the league with 40 points. Sony are ninth and a win will take them to seventh with 31 points.

“I respect what Logarusic has done with Gor Mahia,” admitted ‘Zico’

Coach Logarusic says he is not looking at the table standings but is more concerned about the points.

“At this point what matters is that we win. I am not looking at the table, I care less where we stand. I will only look at it when we have nobody ahead of us,” he said.

In Naivasha, Karuturi Sports host Muhoroni youth in the other match of the weekend.

The game will be played at the Oserian grounds.