FKF Premier League champions Gor Mahia will need a swift turnaround of fortunes when they come up against Djibouti’s Telkom FC in their second match of the 2024 CECAFA Kagame Cup.
Gor Mahia lost 1-0 to Red Arrows from Zambia in the regional club competition’s opening match on Wednesday, July 11, 2024. Veteran forward James Chamanga scored the lone goal in the 74th minute.
Despite falling to the Red Arrows, Gor Mahia coach Leonardo Martins Neiva opined that a lot of work has to be put in to realize positive results in the upcoming games.
“Tough game for both teams, in the first half the team from Zambia controlled the game in the first 25 minutes but after that, we fixed a few things and got some balance but overall, they played better than us,” said the coach in his post-match press conference.
“At halftime, we fixed some things and when we came back, we had ball possession and circulation but it is the first game for me, they (players) don’t know me, so we need more time to put together our technical and physical issues,” added the coach.
The coach however picked some positives from the match while promising a much improved performance in the upcoming matches: “I am very happy with the attitude, character and behavior. They (players) are fighters which I am very happy about. We must increase our possession, short passes, our movement without the ball and penetration. We also have new players and they are going to get harmony with time.”
Up next for the record FKF Premier League champions is a date against Telkom from Djibouti on Saturday, July 13, 2024 at the Azam Complex in Chamazi starting at 9 pm EAT before they wrap up their group stage matches against Al Hilal from Sudan on Tuesday, July 16, 2024. The winners of the three groups alongside one best loser will proceed to the tournament’s semifinals.
In the meantime, CECAFA announced that US$60,000 prize money will be at stake for the winners of the 2024 edition. The tournament winner will take home $30,000 (KES 3,819,600), the runner-up will receive $20,000 (KES 2,546,400), and the third-place team will earn $10,000 (KES 1,273,200).
Gor Mahia last lifted the trophy in 1985 when they defeated arch-rivals AFC Leopards 2-0 in the final. In the last edition of the tournament, held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in 2021, Uganda’s Express FC emerged victorious over Malawian side Nyasa Big Bullets from Malawi.