Trouble brewing at Gor Mahia

[PHOTO: COURTESY]

As much as Gor Mahia officials may want to deny it, their house is not in order.

There is some unhappiness in the team's dressing room over unpaid bonuses ahead of today's must-win final group B Cecafa Kagame Cup match against AS Ports of Djibouti at the National Stadium, Dar es Salaam.

Gor Mahia's congested fixtures and unfulfilled match bonus reward promises seem to have began taking toll on the player's performance here.

Gor endured a busy schedule in the run up to the regional tournament that saw them play three SportPesa Premier League matches in less than one week and with the players claiming they are yet to receive their last year's league and CAF Confederations Cup bonuses, has led to a luckster performance.

K'Ogalo received Sh4.5million for winning the 2017 SPL title and have so far received Sh13m from CAF for their Confederations Cup Group stages preparations.

However, the record Kenyan champions are yet to live up to their favourites' tag after surviving scares in their identical 2-2 draws against Rayon Sports (Rwanda) and Lydia Ludic (Burundi).

And the discontent at Gor was made clear on Tuesday when captain Harun Shakava claimed the players were unhappy with the way the management is treating them after their lethargic display against Ludic at Chamazi Stadium.

"As many people expect Gor Mahia to beat teams, it is somehow difficult for us. We have played many more games (Confederations Cup, SportPesa Super Cup, the Shield and the league) than any other team here," said Shakava.

"But I think there is something wrong in the dressing home. I hope the officials will sort it out," said Shakava.

"At the moment, I can't share with the press what is troubling us in the dressing room. The officials are in a better position to answer this.

"The group is still wide open, so if we win on Thursday (Today) we will be through."

Gor coach Dylan Kerr was disappointed with his team's performance that he publicly 'disowned' his own players.

"I would rather have 11 of the Ludic players that played today than those in my team. That wasn't my team today. My team played on Sunday. We can't really have excuses because I asked each of the players if they were ready for the match. We are missing that atmosphere in the dressing room and on the field," said Kerr.

However, when contacted, an agitated Gor Mahia CEO Lordvick Aduda denied owing the players any money.

"There is no problem with the management. Which bonuses are the players talking about? We pay bonuses with salaries. We are in Tanzania and their bank accounts are in Nairobi. So, which bonuses are you people talking about?," asked Aduda.

"I don't know what is the problem. I am not the coach and everybody was playing on the pitch. There is nothing like motivation. Let's stop insinuating things that are not there. If the team has drawn, how do you want to insinuate that there is a go slow?

"The Kenyan media is part and parcel of putting this nonsense into players' heads. How much do we owe the players in terms of salaries? Caf sent part of the money for preparation of the matches and that is not an income. We have already explained this to the players."