Polack keeps faith Gor can overturn Alger defeat

Gor Mahia FC head coach Steven Polack believes his team still has a chance of overturning first leg 4-1 loss to USM Alger in the CAF Champions League on Sunday.

Alger have a three-goal caution as they tour Nairobi, and Gor will need to be at their best to turn tables, according to Polack.

Ahead of the important fixture, the Briton is candid K’Ogalo were not inspiring in their Sunday Kenyan Premier League (KPL) match against KCB, albeit winning 2-1 at the Kenyatta Stadium, Machakos.

“We all saw what happened in the first leg, we can’t defeat USM with the kind of football we played today.  We played well in the first half but come the second half things were really different. I will talk to talk to my players about it,” told Polack.

He underlined coming down from three goals will not be an easy task, but kept faith such comebacks have happened elsewhere especially in the continental club championships.

“My plan is to guide them not to concede a goal in the whole match but try as much as possible to score goals, more so in the first half. I understand clubs from the North Africa are used to playing attacking football which can give us a lot of pressure to defend as we attack, but will give our best,” explained the tactician.

Polack is not worried the 18-time Kenyan champions will have to do without some of their best players, owing to injuries.

Dependable right-back Philemon Otieno is still sidelined with a long-term achilles injury, while Nicholas Kipkirui, Francis Afriye are also out with injuries.

“I have more than 23 players in the squad and apart from few players who are injured; we still have options,” he said.

Referees

Confederation of African Football (CAF) has named Alioum Alioum from Cameroon as the center referee for the Sunday’s match.

Alioum will be assisted by his compatriots Elvis Guy Noupue Nguegoue (First Assistant), Rodrigue Menye Mpele (Second Assistant) and Antoine Max Depadoux Effa Essouma (Fourth Official).

Khalid Abdallah Mohammed from Tanzania will serve as the Match Cmmissioner.

The aggregate winner will proceed to the competition’s group stages while the loser will have a lifeline in the CAF Confederations Cup’s play-off round.