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Five things we learned from KPL Round One

Nicholas Kipkirui of Gor Mahia celebrates his goal against Tusker during their Kenyan Premier League match at Moi Stadium, Kisumu on August 31, 2019. Gor won the match 5-2. PHOTO | ONDARI OGEGA |
By SAMUEL GACHARIRA
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The 2019/20 Kenyan Premier League (KPL) season kicked off at the weekend with nine matches being played across different venues. A total of 26 goals were scored with defending champions Gor Mahia being the highest scorers contributing five goals. Newly promoted Kisumu AllStars were given a rude welcome to the topflight league by Ulinzi Stars who humbled them at their Kisumu backyard while returnees Wazito failed to sparkle settling for a 1-1 draw against Nzoia Sugar.
Nation Sport looks at five things we learned from the opening weekend of the KPL.
Gor Mahia is still the team to beat
It was widely expected that Gor Mahia would struggle in the early stages of the new season after losing key players like Harun Shakava, Jacques Tuyisenge and Francis Kahata in the transfer window but it was business as usual in the opening weekend. After thrashing Burundi’s Aigle Noir 5-1, the Kenyan champions were at their destructive best against Tusker on Saturday.
Skipper Kenneth Muguna led from the front with a brace while Nicholas Kipkirui provided another reminder that Tuyisenge’s departure was a blessing in disguise for the record Kenyan champions. Despite conceding twice lending credence to the fact that Gor is a work in progress, K’Ogalo is still the team to beat. It will take something special to deny them a record-extending 19th title.
Wazito experiment to take longer
Barely did a minute pass in the transfer window without Wazito announcing a new signing. A day before their league opener, the moneybags made four additions to their squad. Ali Abondo, Brian Musa, Matthew Odongo and Amos Asembeka were unveiled on Friday and on Saturday the latter three were named in the first eleven.
By their lofty standards in transfers and a well-coordinated preseason, a draw against a new-look Nzoia Sugar side is cause for alarm. Or perhaps it’s the quality of display on the day and the manner at which they equalized. There was little to pick as positives in Round One from the men in yellow. It’s still early days but the lack of cutting edge in the final third suggests the Wazito project may take longer to take off.
Wazito head coach Stanley Okumbi watches his team during their friendly match against Muranga Seal at GEMS International Cambridge School , Nairobi on August 11, 2019. PHOTO | SILA KIPLAGAT |
Wazito head coach Stanley Okumbi watches his team during their friendly match against Muranga Seal at GEMS International Cambridge School , Nairobi on August 11, 2019. PHOTO | SILA KIPLAGAT |NATION MEDIA GROUP
Up next is Western Stima in Kisumu, then AFC Leopards, a trip to Kericho to face Zoo and a date with Mathare United at Kasarani. It remains to be seen whether they will be genuine title contenders after match day five. So far, not good!
AFC Leopards’ average foreigners don’t inspire confidence
After rescuing AFC Leopards from relegation last season, Rwandan coach Casa Mbungo was expected to continue the renaissance and turn the team to top four contenders this term. He pressed the infamous button that contributed to the departure of nearly all his predecessors in the last five seasons - foreigners were signed by the club and they arrived in numbers.
Vincent Habamahoro (Rwanda), Tresor Ndikumana (Burundi), Ismailia Diara (Mali) were all handed starts but there was nothing special from the quartet against Kakamega Homeboyz. If the displays on match day one and preseason friendlies are anything to go by, Ingwe look bound to suffer from another spending spree of panic buys characterised by “average” foreigners.
AFC Leopards midfielder Salim Kinje in action in a past Kenyan Premier League match at the Nyayo Stadium. PHOTO | FILE | NATION
AFC Leopards midfielder Salim Kinje in action in a past Kenyan Premier League match at the Nyayo Stadium. PHOTO | FILE | NATION
The last foreigner to leave a mark at AFC Leopards is midfield maestro Salim Kinje. It’s now seven years since Kinje left the club in 2012, a year Ingwe achieved their highest ever finish in the league this decade. No current foreigner at AFC Leopards is anywhere close to Kinje’s class and surpassing the 2012 achievements is already a big ask for Mbungo and his charges.
Bandari strikers need to step up
Speed, precision and poacher’s instinct. Those three qualities perfectly describe Bandari coach Bernard Mwalala during his heydays. Surprisingly none of his two options upfront, Wycliffe Ochomo and Yema Mwana, are an embodiment of his young daring self. While Mwana has speed, he lacks precision and the poacher’s instinct. It seems Ochomo's best years are behind him after an insipid display where he struggled to get a shot on target against Mathare United.
It’s not lost on anyone that Bandari had not scored in open play for 180 minutes (first leg against Al Ahly Shendi and Super Cup against Gor Mahia) until they scraped through to the first round of the Caf Confederation Cup courtesy of an own goal in Shendi. When such luck evades them, their inadequacies in attack rises to the fore. If not for Michael Wanyika’s heroics in goal, the dockers could easily have lost to the Slum Boys.
William Wadri, Abdallah Hassan and Benjamin Mosha have often been the cavalries for Bandari but Mwalala knows if he is to improve on the back-to-back second-place finishes and challenge for the title, his strikers have to step up.
Brace-hero Enosh Ochieng Golden Boot candidate
The kick-off of the new campaign was blighted by a ruling from Independent Disciplinary and Complaints Committee (IDCC) that saw Enosh Ochieng, Allan Wanga and Umaru Kasumba share the 2018/19 Golden Boot with 17 goals each.
The ruling nullified Ochieng’s hat-trick against Mount Kenya United in a rescheduled match last season but the forward picked from where he left. As if to justify he was the worthy winner of the Golden Boot, Ochieng claimed a brace against debutants Kisumu All Stars in Kisumu.
Ulinzi Stars striker Enosh Ochieng celebrates after scoring during their SportPesa Premier League match against Kenya Commercial Bank at the Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos on May 26, 2019. PHOTO | SILA KIPLAGAT |
Ulinzi Stars striker Enosh Ochieng celebrates after scoring during their SportPesa Premier League match against Kenya Commercial Bank at the Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos on May 26, 2019. PHOTO | SILA KIPLAGAT |NATION MEDIA GROUP
That both goals came from open play is encouraging for the Ulinzi Stars striker who will be seeking to become the second player after John Baraza (2009 and 2010) to win consecutive Golden Boots in the modern day Kenyan Premier League. He now leads the race alongside Gor Mahia’s Muguna with two goals.

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