logo
ADVERTISEMENT

Gor Mahia boss stops recruitment of overseas' players

Rachier said the club’s top management reached a unanimous decision to spurn imports at a meeting held last week.

image
by CHRIS MBAISI

Sports28 July 2023 - 02:00
ADVERTISEMENT

In Summary


  • •His remarks come in the wake of a damning decision by the Confederation of African Football to bar the club from next season's Caf Champions League. 
  • •The continental football governing body cracked the whip on K'Ogalo after they failed to offset dues owed to three former players.
Gor Mahia players celebrate in a past match

Click here to Gor Mahia chairman Ambrose Rachier has said the record Kenyan champions will no longer splash money on foreign players. 

Rachier lamented that the best the foreign acquisitions had done so far was to harm the club's reputation with endless lawsuits lodged with the world football governing body, Fifa. 

His remarks come in the wake of a damning decision by the Confederation of African Football to bar the club from next season's Caf Champions League. 

The continental football governing body cracked the whip on K'Ogalo after they failed to offset dues owed to three former players.

The three are Malian custodian, Adama Keita, Burundian forward Jules Ulimwengu as well as the towering Congolese attacker Sando Yangayaw. Rachier said the club’s top management reached a unanimous decision to spurn imports at a meeting held last week.

“Most of the players we've imported from other countries have been coming here to cause us problems and eat into our finances without adding any palpable value. Our decision as the office is that we will shut the door on foreign players,” Rachier said.

"That's our position going forward and I don't see us taking a softer stance anytime soon," he added.

Rachier has reiterated his earlier statement that the club was unfairly locked out of the continental stage, insisting that they had fulfilled all the requisite requirements set by Caf.

He wondered why the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) seemed unwilling to intervene. “When Caf brought the problem to our attention, we ran up and down and did everything possible to clear the payables before the draw that was conducted on Tuesday. I still believe FKF had enough time to fight for our survival in the competition.”

However, in a separate interview, FKF chief executive officer Barry Otieno said they had done all they could to address the situation.

Otieno placed the club's mishap squarely at the feet of its leadership, claiming that upon consultation, they claimed they had no overdue payables and even indicated the existence of two agreements with two of their former players.

Gor Mahia's uneventful exit has left Kenya with Kakamega Homeboyz as the nation's sole flag bearers on the continental stage. Homeboyz punched a ticket to the Caf Confederation Cup after storming the FKF Cup title following their narrow 1-0 win over Tusker at Nyayo stadium on July 1.

Meanwhile, Gor Mahia skipper Philemon Otieno reckons they can brush aside the heart-wrenching disappointment to prevail in the new season.

"We are all disappointed, yes, but it wouldn't be wise for us to spend our time languishing in regrets. I believe we can shake off the dust and clinch the title again next season," Otieno said. 

ADVERTISEMENT

logo© The Star 2024. All rights reserved