AFC Leopards plot Homeboyz raid to beef up squad
AFC Leopards players celebrate their goal against Kakamega Homeboyz at Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi on December 17, 2023.
What you need to know:
- Leopards’ head coach Tomas Trucha has said he urgently needs to add depth and quality to his squad that has visibly struggled this season and has remained in the lower echelons of the log
- The 12-time Kenyan champions have managed only two wins this season that is one round of fixtures away from the halfway stage
- The players include defenders Salim Murunga and Brian Eshihanda of Kakamega Homeboyz and wingers Kelvin Sagida and Ken Onzere from National Super League side Mulembe United
AFC Leopards intend to recruit five key players during the mid-season transfer window to bolster their squad.
The window opens on January 1 to 31.
Leopards’ head coach Tomas Trucha has said he urgently needs to add depth and quality to his squad that has visibly struggled this season and has remained in the lower echelons of the bottom half of the 18-team league table.
“My focus is to strengthen the squad by adding a few players who have experience in the country’s top league. I am looking forward to bring on board two strikers, one midfielder and two defenders,” Trucha said after his team lost 1-0 to Kakamega Homeboyz in the Elijah Lidonde Super Cup last Sunday.
The 12-time Kenyan champions have managed only two wins this season that is one round of fixtures away from the halfway stage.
The Czech coach is targeting top players from Kakamega Homeboyz, Nzoia Sugar and Mulembe United, formerly Vihiga United.
The players include defenders Salim Murunga and Brian Eshihanda of Kakamega Homeboyz and wingers Kelvin Sagida and Ken Onzere from National Super League side Mulembe United.
Murunga, 22, is among 12 players who joined Nzoia from Nairobi-based NSL side Rainbow FC in August.
Also on Ingwe’s radar are strikers Alex Imbusia who joined Homeboyz from Sofapaka and Ghanaian attacking midfielder Stephen Opoku, 24, also from Homeboyz.
The Ingwe-targeted players impressed during the annual Lidonde Super Cup in Kakamega last weekend.
Opoku, who previously played for Tanzanian Premier League outfit Singida Big Stars returned to Homeboyz after his search for greener pastures abroad came to nought.
Opoku’s brothers Thomas Boakye and Peter Konadu are playing professional football in Czech Republic and the Swedish leagues respectively.
Leopards, who play Ulinzi in their last first leg fixture on January 7 in Nairobi are placed 14th in the league standing with 15 points, just one above the relegation zone.
During the Lidonde Cup tournament in Kakamega, Trucha stressed the need for a top striker at the den.
The team has only managed to score 12 goals from 16 matches, with only Muhoroni Youth, Shabana, Sofapaka and Nzoia Sugar managing fewer.
“We need a clinical striker to bury the chances we are creating. We need somebody who can score goals more than our current strikers,” said Trucha who also asked for better wingers, who are quick and direct.
Scoring was the main undoing for Leopards last season as they finished seventh when much more was expected from the giant club.
Ingwe scored a paltry 32 goals in the entire league last season, only better than relegated Mathare United (26), Vihiga Bullets (28) and Muhoroni Youth (22), who escaped the axe via the play-offs.
Victor Omune was Ingwe’s highest scorer last season with eight goals, followed by Cliff Nyakeya and Ojo Olaniyi who had seven each. Nigerian Olaniyi has since left the club.
The current attack of Brian Yakhama, Clifton Miheso, Maxwell Otieno and Omune hasn’t clicked since Trucha arrived in October, replacing Tom Juma.
