SuperSport United reject 'substandard' Machakos facilities
SuperSport United head coach Kaitano Tembo (right) with his players upon arrival at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on April 6, 2018, two days before they face Gor Mahia in the Caf Confederation Cup play-off first leg match. PHOTO | CHRIS OMOLLO |
What you need to know:
- Coach Kaitano Tembo downplayed reports that he has named a second string side so as to rest key players for Wednesday's crunch league clash against Orlando Pirates, saying that he doesn't have a fringe players.
South Africa's SuperSport United have rejected earlier plans to host them in Machakos and opted to operate from the Ole Sereni hotel in Nairobi since “there are no five-star hotels in Machakos.”
This is despite their fact that their Caf Confederation Cup play-off, first leg clash against Gor Mahia will be played on Sunday in Machakos, meaning that they will be forced to commute to feel the Kenyatta Stadium pitch on Saturday.
A club official, who spoke with us on condition of anonymity, said: "We sent an advance team and they said there are only three four star hotels in Machakos. As our policy, this team can only be accommodated in five star hotels. Nothing less. We shall commute to the stadium."
The Matsatsantsa (The Swanky Boys) arrived in the country at 3.10pm Friday, and team captain Dean Furman referred to the Kenyan trip as a "break from the PSL".
"This is a very important tournament. We are still disappointed that we didn't win last year despite gracing the finals so our targets are really high,” Furman said.
"There is a lot going on at home, we have had challenges with tight schedules and long hours of travelling to get to match venues, so we hope our poor performance won't affect our performance in this match. This is a good break from the league."
Coach Kaitano Tembo downplayed reports that he has named a second string side so as to rest key players for Wednesday's crunch league clash against Orlando Pirates, saying that he doesn't have fringe players.
"Many of our key players are injured and I have rested some of them because we also have the second leg to think about,” Tembo said.
"Starting away gives us an opportunity to study the opponent better before the return match but I don't think it gives us any edge over Gor Mahia. I can’t predict the outcome of the game but one thing I can promise is that we shall give the fans a good game," Tembo said.
The 29-man SuperSport contingent was received by Gor Chief Executive Officer Lordvick Aduda and Organising Secretary Judith Anyango.
