Rama is the man

By Gilbert Wandera

Two weeks after being named player of the month, Congo United midfielder Rama Salim has been called up to the national team for this weekend's LG Cup match against Sudan at Nyayo Stadium.

Salim was named the Kandanda Monthly player of the month of May. The award is an initiative of local sports journalists.

Salim will replace international midfielder Jamal Mohamed who is unavailable for the weekend fixture, as he has been snapped up by a Romanian club.

Stars coach Zedekiah Otieno praised the Congo midfielder and said he has the potential to go places with focus.

Great player

“I have watched him and my opinion is that he is a great player who has a lot of potential. He just needs to work hard and be focussed and he can make it,” he said.

The Congo midfielder will at the same time be considered for a place in the national Under-23 team which takes on Uganda in Sunday’s All-Africa games qualifier at Nyayo Stadium.

Both the Under-23 side and the national team will be training together giving the coaches an opportunity to identify which players to use in which team.

In a related development, the Kenyan coach has said he is using the match against Sudan to build up a future team.

“Being a friendly international it accords me the opportunity to give other players a chance to show us what they can do,”

“That is why we have left out a player like Edgar Ochieng. We already know what he can do and he is still part of the team. The idea is to build a big pool of players so that we have variety and do not struggle when the regulars are not available,” he explained.

Play Sudan

The coach said he hopes to get another build-up match during next month’s Fifa window where he will field a stronger side in preparation for the Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Guinea Bissau in September.

“For this weekend’s match it was not possible to get the foreign-based players, but we still have a strong team considering that the last time we played Sudan we did not have Sofapaka players,” he said.

Kenya beat Sudan 1-0 in the Nile Basin invitational tournament held in Cairo at the beginning of the year.

Sudan arrive in Nairobi today and will be fielding a strong squad with most of the players featuring in the on-going Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

The Kenyan team to take on Sudan has: Goalkeepers: Boniface Oluoch (Tusker), Jerim Onyango (Gor).

Defenders: James Situma, Pascal Ochieng (Sofapaka), Brian Mandela (Rangers), Kevin Kimani (Mathare United), Eric Masika (Gor). Midfielders: Kevin Ochieng Joseph Nyaga (Rangers), Titus Mulama, Osborne Monday (Sofapaka), Collins Okoth (Gor),  Rama Salim  Strikers: John Barasa and  Bob Mugalia.