Gor to warm up for APR clash with mini-tournament
Gor Mahia's Cameroonian midfielder Bertrand Konfor (right) jogs alongside his teammates during a training session at Riverside grounds in Ruaka, Nairobi on September 22, 2019.
What you need to know:
- Gor, who are set to face Rwanda's APR in the preliminary round of the Champions League, will take on KPL sides Nairobi City Stars and Posta Rangers in the mini-tournament
- The opening match of the tournament, which will take place at Jamhuri Park Sports Ground in Nairobi, will be between Posta and City Stars at 9am
- Gor Mahia assistant coach Patrick Odhiambo told Nation Sport that they will use the matches to gauge the players’ fitness levels and fix gray areas ahead of their first leg clash in Rwanda on November 28
Record Kenyan Premier League (KPL) champions Gor Mahia will intensify their preparations for the Caf Champions League with a series of friendly matches to be played in form of a mini-tournament on Saturday.
Gor, who are set to face Rwanda's APR in the preliminary round of the Champions League, will take on KPL sides Nairobi City Stars and Posta Rangers in the mini-tournament.
The opening match of the tournament, which will take place at Jamhuri Park Sports Ground in Nairobi, will be between Posta and City Stars at 9am.
Gor Mahia assistant coach Patrick Odhiambo told Nation Sport that they will use the matches to gauge the players’ fitness levels and fix gray areas ahead of their first leg clash in Rwanda on November 28.
“We have a serious match ahead of us, and so we intend to learn a lot from the tournament. Because they (City Stars and Rangers) are good teams, we hope that we will get the correct picture of the fitness level of every player. Also there are some players whom we are still trying to find their best place in the team, and who to pair them with,” said Odhiambo.
Gor, who signed 14 new players during this season’s transfer window period, have played six friendly matches, the latest being their 1-0 win over Posta on Tuesday.
Posta coach Sammy Omollo said he will be looking out for team chemistry.
“I expect City Stars and Gor to give us good competition, which will give me a clear picture of my team. I am not bothered by the results but how well the team is gelling and so far the preparation has been good,” said Omollo, who last season guided the mailmen to a 10th place finish on 22 points.
On his part, City Stars coach Sanjin Alagic, whose side will face Gor in the second match of the tournament at 11.30am, said: "It is a perfect opportunity for us to see how the team responds in game situations. These are the sort of opponents we will be facing when the league hopefully kicks off next week," said the Bosnian.
City Stars returned to the top flight league by virtue of winning the 2019/2020 National Super League title.
On the team’s preparation for the upcoming season, Alagic said: "It hasn't been easy to bring the team back in shape after over seven months of inactivity but in the six weeks, we have been training I have seen notable progress in the team. The new players, of course, struggled to fit in the team because our training programmes are very different from what they are used to but they are now good to go."
The last match of the tournament pitting Gor against Posta will kick off at 3pm.
