Etienne Ndayiragije: Mathematics graduate at the helm of Kenya Police FC

And so, when Kenyan Premier League champions Kenya Police approached him through his agent on November 29 last year, to join the law enforcers, he didn’t hesitate.

“I knew what I was getting myself into,” he says.

“I have been following Kenyan football for quite some time now and I knew a thing or two about the Kenyan football. Remember, I also led Tanzania’s Taifa Stars in eliminating Kenya from the 2022 African Nations Championship (Chan) qualifiers in 2019. So Kenyan football was familiar to me."

Read: ‘Eight coaches in four years’: Tough choices won title for Kenya Police

“Kenya has good players and competitive clubs and Police was not any different,” Ndayiragije opened up about joining Kenya Police at the Police Sacco Stadium in Nairobi on July 10 after he was awarded the Coach of the Month of June by Sport Journalist Association of Kenya/Betika, becoming only the second foreign coach in the across all sports to be recognized in the awards.

“When my agent told me about the opening at the Police, I did not give it much thought. I was unattached at the time and I said to myself why not? We also had a long conversation with Police chairman Nyale Munga."

“When I went through Police squad, I only knew two players - Francis Kahata and Kenneth Muguna since they had played with Tanzanian clubs while I was the Tanzania coach between 2019-2021 and so I could watch them play. They were outstanding players in their own right and so I knew where I would start from.”

Ndayiragije, born 46 years ago in Rohero, Bujumbura, arrived at Police Sacco on December 1, three days before their match against Nairobi City Stars and he took it upon himself to talk to the players.

“I had only two days to train the team and on Saturday we had a match against City Stars. I talked to players. I could feel the confidence was not there. Mentally, they were down. It seemed like they had thrown in the towel. That is understandable since they had lost most of their matches and they were right in the relegation zone. That would definitely bring the morale of players down. I encouraged them to embrace teamwork and not individualism. I like that they believed in me and that is how everything changed for the better,” said the Burundian tactician.

A seemingly rejuvenated Police thumped City Stars 3-1.

Ndayiragije, an only child, says after that win, things just fell in place.

"The victory was like an injection. The energy in the training increased noticeable. The changing room was warm and the confidence flooded back. There after we recorded win after win and at the end, as many would say, we unexpectedly won the title."

“But if you ask me, teamwork, self believe, overwhelming support from the management won the title for us,” says the father of four.

His children, Blessings (14 years), Irakoze (12), Munezero (9) and Irahari (4) and wife Imaculee are based in Burundi but currently on holiday in Kenya with the man of their house.

Ndayiragije is reluctant to talk about his background, his childhood, what he did before moving fully into football management, his playing career, and all those experiences that would humanize him, only offering his football thoughts.

A Bachelor of Science in Mathematics graduate from the University of Rwanda in Butare, Ndayiragije says his next focus is the CAF Champions League.

Read: Kenya Police’s rise from relegation to champions

He switches to English and Swahili with ease but one can tell he is not really fluent in either language. Burundians are French speaking but with the writer having no knowledge of the Romance language the two widely spoken tongues in East Africa do just fine.

“I know the expectations of the fans, management and even that of the players is to make a mark at the continental stage. Even though I’m a man of God I know you can’t just sit pretty and expect miracles to happen. Therefore, we need to start early preparation. We need to beefing up the squad especially the mid field and attack department. If we get all these right, we are capable of getting to the group stage and even past that,” said Ndayiragije who has a UEFA Pro coaching license.

The mathematics graduate, who preaches the Gospel said they are in talks with Police to renew his contract.

“I don’t want to boast but you know when you leave a mark like I have done at Police definitely other clubs will be coming for me and so, I wait to see how the negotiations between Police and I will go. I love challenges and winning and so I remain hopeful,” added the tactician who coached Burundi in 2023.

Ndayiragije says local clubs should invest in their own stadium, for them to have proper and ample time for training.

“Luckily Police have their stadium and they have ample training facilities. But it’s not only about facilities but also investing in academies. This region has good players that just need proper grooming and I believe we would export more players to professional leagues in Europe,” said the tactician.

He said local coaches and the federation at large should ensure tacticians enrol in coaching courses as that would help the standards of the sport to grow.

As Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania hosts the 2024 Chan from August 2 to 30, Ndayiragije said that the region has a rich football history and he expects new talents to arise amidst entertaining football.

“It will be a good platform for local players to showcase what they have. It’s also a chance for scouts to recruit good players and so let the games begin,” said Ndayiragije.

The Burundian will be happy with his knowledge of club football in Africa. He managed top-tier teams in the region including Vital’O of Burundi, Tanzania’s Azam and Bugesera of Rwanda.

He won the Burudni Premier League with Vital’O in 2016, and guided Tanzania’s Taifa Stars to the 2020 African Nations Champions.

Ndayiragije has grown fond of Kenyan delicacies fish, pork ribs and brown ugali.