Abdalla admits ‘relief’ after his account was closed

By GILBERT WANDERA

 Sacked KCB coach Abdalla Juma says he is a relieved man after being shown the door on Sunday.

Juma, voted last year’s coach of the year, said his continued stay at the helm of a club that finished fourth last season was  becoming a big liability to himself.

“It is a great relief to be out of KCB. The poor results were beginning to spoil my name and would have made it impossible to get a job elsewhere.

“I am proud of what we achieved in the few months I was in charge and wish the new man all the best,” he said.

Juma said he made history at the club by taking them from a mid-table side to a top contender in just one year.

“Before I came to KCB, they had never finished beyond ninth position on the log in more than ten years. But under my guidance they finished fourth for the first time and with it came great recognition. It shows that I was doing the right thing,” said the coach.

Juma said without elaborating that he was let down by internal sabotage in the technical bench.

“I was let down by my own people on the bench but I don’t want to say more on this. I am yet to clear with the management who I should say gave me all the support I needed to succeed,” Juma said.

Permanent COACH

Goalkeeper trained Dan Oluoch has in the meantime been appointed as stand in coach and will be assisted by Michael Oyango until the club gets a permanent replacement.

Juma Abdalla together with his assistant, Jeremy Owuor were sent packing on Monday, April 14, after a poor start to the 2014 season.

Elsewhere, Nakuru All Stars coach Peter Okidi insists he is not worried about relegation in the wake of poor results.

Okidi’s side went down 1-0 to fellow new comers Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) on Saturday in their latest loss.

But Okidi says his team will pick up and maintain their position in the league.

“We are not even thinking about relegation. That is far from our mind. We are confident that the results will get better and we can keep our place in the top league,” said Okidi.

He said the team has to work on their finishing, which he admitted is a challenge. “We are creating so many chances but unfortunately no goals are coming. It is something we got to work on,” he said.