Gor Mahia coach Hassan Oktay says that he knew his side would beat Bandari in the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) match played on Tuesday.
K’Ogalo needed a late header from Rwandan striker Jacques Tuyisenge to sink the visiting Dockers and claim sweet revenge against the side that beat them 2-1 in the reverse fixture.
“I said it before the match that we will beat Bandari, I knew how to approach the game and I am very happy that my players played according to instructions,” Oktay told Goal in an interview.
“We dominated them in both halves, and honestly speaking, a draw could have been a painful result for my side because what Bandari did was sit back and defend, they never wanted to attack us. They opted to shield their keeper and made it difficult for my strikers to find the target.
“I will gladly take the single goal we scored because it gives us maximum points and also takes us to the top of the table, a very good indicator that we are ready to defend the title.”
The Cypriot coach also took time to praise the match referee for what he termed as ‘fair officiating.’
“He did a good job compared to what we have seen in our past two matches against Homeboyz and Ulinzi Stars. Overall, it was a fair game from the referee, he was far better than the rest and he deserves praise.”
Gor Mahia are now preparing to play seven matches in the next 14 days.
“That will be a tough call for my team. It will be difficult, very difficult but there is nothing we can do. We have to play the matches because they have already been included in the roster. We can’t run away, we must play and I know my players are ready to deliver,” Oktay told Goal .
The Kenyan champions will start the congested fixture schedule with an away tie against Mount Kenya United on Thursday.
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)
