Gor eager to dim New Stars: Kenyan champions need to be at their best as they face New Stars of Cameroon

Gor Mahia Boniface Omondi(R) and Roland Lane of New Star Doula from Cameroon battle for the ball during their CAF confederation qualifier match at Kasarani Stadium on Sunday 13/01/19[Boniface Okendo,Standard]

Gor Mahia head coach Hassan Oktay needs to do a lot to win over the highly demanding fans.

Since he took over five weeks ago, the coach has not won over the fans completely perhaps due to his tame style.

Oktay will be under sharp focus as the team takes on New Stars of Cameroon in the return match of their Confederations Cup away today.

Gor Mahia carry a 2-1 advantage going into the return match a result they picked at home last Sunday.

Having made it to the group stages of the Confederations Cup last year, nothing less is expected of Gor Mahia and the pressure is on Oktay to deliver.

The only way he can convince the fans that he is the man for the job is by helping Gor Mahia make it to the last 16 once again.

Apart from a guarantee of Sh27 million, playing in the group stages of the continental tournament is a big achievement for any team as it comes with an opportunity to take on the best from Africa for the next three months.

Gor Mahia have already tested it and will be expecting nothing less. But first they must overcome today’s hurdle and it does not look easy.

First, the goal conceded by Gor Mahia gives their opponents plenty of advantage as they just need to win by a single goal to edge the Kenyan side.

Secondly, Gor Mahia are not good at defending a narrow lead. It happened against Lobi Stars who edged them out of the Champions League first round despite the Kenyan side carrying a 3-1 advantage into the return match.

But Oktay seems determined to send Gor Mahia to the group stages despite their seeming disadvantage.

“I’m not worried at all about the goal we conceded at Kasarani. We created many chances, but we were denied a goal and three penalties only for the referee to give them (New Stars) an offside goal,”  Oktay said before his side left for Cameroon.

“We are going to Cameroon to win, nothing else. We will play the same way we have been doing in other matches. We are becoming stronger and better with every match and I believe we can dominate the game there.”

“The referees were a bit unfair in the first leg, but we have a chance to finish off the job there. Wednesday’s league win was a motivating result for us after rotating over six players. We are really positive and looking forward to the New Stars match.”

Gor Mahia go into this match without dependable defenders Harun Shakava and Joash Onyango who are suspended for the fixture.

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