- Gor Mahia coach Charles Akonnor explained the tactical adjustment that helped his side overcome Kenya Police FC on Sunday.
- K’Ogalo secured a 2–0 first-half victory at the Nyayo National Stadium, a result that lifted them to the top of the SportPesa Premier League table.
- Akonnor revealed that he had decided to tweak his formation to ensure a positive outcome for his team.
Gor Mahia coach Charles Akonnor has explained the tactical twist that managed to topple the reigning champions, Kenya Police FC, on Sunday.
K’Ogalo secured a convincing victory over the Law Enforcers with two unanswered goals in an entertaining encounter staged at the Nyayo National Stadium.
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The visiting side got off to a dream start, breaking the deadlock after just two minutes.
The opener was thanks to a fluid build-up between Austine Odhiambo and Ebenezer Adu-kwaw, who was making his return from injury.
Adu-kwaw delivered a good low cross into the box, which found the in-form Felix Oluoch, who slotted home the lead which was his fourth goal in his debut season with Gor.
Later, defender Silvester Owino launched a searching ball from deep in his own half into Police FC’s final third.
The live-wire winger Shariff Musa capitalized on the opportunity, extending Gor’s lead to 2-0, which ultimately sealed the victory.
Gor Mahia coach explains the tactical twist that defeated Kenya Police FC
Speaking after the match, the Ghanaian international stated that to secure maximum points against the defending champions, his team had studied their opponents’ gameplay.
He decided to adjust his formation to ensure a positive result.
Today the game was special because we watched our opponent’s previous match,” Akonnor explained.
Normally we use a 4-3-3 formation, but we decided to switch it to a 3-5-2 to put pressure on them. We did that, and it worked for us in the first half.”
The former Black Stars head coach was pleased that his players executed the game plan perfectly and managed to neutralize Police’s threat in the second half.
In the second half, we were just trying to see out the game. We saw them trying to come at us with long balls, but we weren’t worried about that because we knew the team’s weakness and had a strategy to contain them.
Furthermore, we got early goals, and the players were disciplined. Yeah, that’s how we won today.”
Akonnor praises his players’ improvement and promises more
The three points not only delivered Gor Mahia their fifth win of the season but also propelled them to the top of the Kenya Premier League table with 16 points for the first time this season, after leapfrogging Kakamega Homeboyz, who were held by Murang’a SEAL.
Despite leading the pack, Akonnor stated that the team will continue working hard to maintain their momentum and remain in good form, as he praised his squad for their marked improvement.
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“Sitting atop of the table means a lot to us. It also means we have to continue working hard and maintain faith in what we are doing.
We have players like Musa who have really come on leaps and bounds; I’m very happy for him to have been called to the national team, as they have seen his effort. Players like Bryton are also progressing well, and I can say the development is going on smoothly.”