Oktay confident as Gor plot Petro downfall

After a fruitful weekend in the Mashemeji derby where they clobbered perennial rivals AFC Leopards 2-1, Gor Mahia jet out on Tuesday at 11am for Luanda, Angola aboard a Kenya Airways flight for their second Group D CAF Confederation Cup match against Angolan giants Petro Atletico.

Club chairman Ambrose Rachier told Citizen Digital that the boys will have a feel of the pitch later in the evening after the 4-hour flight before facing off with their hosts on Wednesday from 7pm(Kenyan time).

‘’We expect to be there latest 4pm Kenyan time and will go through the necessary clearances before having a feel of the pitch later in the evening .’’

Head coach Hassan Oktay, however, is not a worried man even as he will miss the services of Group ‘D’ top scorer Jacques Tuyisenge alongside Kenyan international Philemon Otieno who are both sidelined after accumulating back-to-back two yellow cards each in this competition.

It will be interesting to see how Gor will perform without their lead Rwandan striker Tuyisenge who netted two goals in the 4-2 demolition of Zamalek to make him the group’s top scorer.

Oktay, in a separate interview, said he has enough players , singling out Dennis Oliech, Nicholas Kipkirui, Erisa Ssekisambu and Francis Mustapha as possible replacements for Tuyisenge.

‘’My only worry is the fitness level of one of the best midfielders in Kenya, Lawrence Juma, who is unwell. But he will travel with the team all the same,’’ assured Oktay.

According to chairman Rachier, the coach has assured him that Joachim Oluoch with perfectly fit in Otieno’s defensive shoes.

Their opponents, Petro Atletico, trail the group after losing 2-1 to NA Dey Hussein of Algeria in their first Group D match in Algeria and will be seeking to leap at least a position up on Wednesday  when they meet the Kenyan giants at Estadio 11 de Novembre