Oliech: "There is no player locally faster than me"

New Gor Mahia signing Dennis Oliech during training at Camp Toyoyo Stadium on January 5, 2018. [Courtesy]

Gor Mahia striker Dennis Oliech insists he still has what it takes to make an impact in the Sportpesa Premier League (SPL).

Oliech who returns after a two-year absence from the game, says he still has the speed that saw him terrorise defenders as he led Harambee Stars to the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Tunisia.

“I still have something to offer. Specifically, the speed is still there to destabilise defenders.

“If this was not there, I would not have bothered to make a come-back. Furthermore, there are older players who are still active and playing and it is a good reason for me to do so.

“My strong point has always been the ability to run fast and I believe over the 100m distance, there is no player locally faster than me,” he said.

New Gor Mahia signing Dennis Oliech during training at Camp Toyoyo Stadium on January 5, 2018. [Courtesy]

On why he chose Gor Mahia, Oliech said the pressure that comes with playing for the Kenyan champions is what attracted him to the club.

“I had my eyes on playing for Sofapaka, but looking at the pedigree of the two clubs and encouragement from close friends and family, I settled on Gor Mahia.

“The KPL champions have the best players locally and the fans are always pushing you to perform. So it was a more attractive choice. You want to play in a club that pushes you day in day out and raise the expectations on yourself.

“Furthermore, there are some players in Gor Mahia that I played with before in the national team. There is Humphrey Mieno and Francis Kahata. They understand my style of play and so it will be easy to be on the same pitch and team.”

The former French Ligue One side Nantes and Auxerre striker said he has set a target of at least 25 goals this season.

“I have been following the local league for long and it is a bit disappointing we don’t score many goals every season. When you have a top striker scoring 15 or 17 goals in a season, it is a concern.

“One of the reasons for this low scoring is lack of consistency from the strikers. You find that someone scores one goal after maybe three or four matches. I want to change that and look at scoring at least 25 or even 30 goals. It is possible.

“The secret lies in being able to score one or two goals in every game. It is a big possibility and I want to do it.”

On the national team Harambee Stars, Oliech said: “I want to play again for Stars and I believe this is a possibility once I hit my full potential. I still have something I can give to the team.

“Everyone has noticed that since I left, there has been no successor. There has not been a replacement.

“Perhaps, I retired too early. I would love to play alongside Michael Olunga. He is a great striker but needs plenty of support.”