Gor Mahia are destined to pick up a win against AFC Leopards in Sunday's Mashemeji Derby clash at Kasarani, Peter Dawo has claimed.
Dawo believes the superior record of Gor Mahia will tilt the clash in their favour again. The K'Ogalo legend is, however, looking forward to an entertaining match pitting the Green Army's shaky defence against the pacy Ingwe forwards.
“It is going to be the tightest Mashemeji Derby encounter because of late Gor Mahia's defence has been leaking goals whereas AFC Leopards enjoy young and speedy forwards,” Dawo told Goal.
“But whenever Gor Mahia face AFC Leopards they always show a sudden spirit of superiority, look motivated and that is how they have ended up dominating this fixture.
“My prediction is Gor Mahia will win this match simply because of the better past record they have.”
The Green Army have conceded eight goals in their last four matches but Dawo hopes coach Steven Polack will find a quick solution to end that trend.
“I hope the coach [Steven Polack] is doing some better training on how to ensure his backline does not concede a goal against AFC Leopards,” Dawo continued.
“If Ingwe are going to score first, then be assured Gor Mahia will sweat to equalize and maybe pick up a win.”
“What gives me hope further is yes Gor Mahia have leaked goals but in the end, they have won. This is something good for the team because it shows they can fight for victory regardless of the situation of the match.”
The retired footballer believes Polack knows the importance of maintaining their dominance over Ingwe. The last time AFC Leopards defeated Gor Mahia, with a 1-0 margin, was in 2016.
“Polack is a good coach and perhaps knows the importance of beating AFC Leopards and of course, he knows it is not going to be an easy match at all,” added Dawo.
“Win over AFC Leopards always brings pride to our fans.”
The former striker believes the result of the Sunday Mashemeji clash will not have much of an impact on the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) title race.
“The outcome will not count much because we still have a lot of matches ahead. You cannot really say Gor Mahia will cruise to the title with ease even after beating AFC Leopards,” Dawo concluded.
“In football, things happen and one will never say it is done until he has the trophy on his arms.”
The two sides meet again on March 8 after Gor Mahia picked up a 4-1 win in the reverse fixture.