Gor Mahia coach Carlos Manuel Vaz Pinto has stated they are not the favourites heading into the semi-finals of the FKF Shield Cup on Sunday.
K’Ogalo will be seeking to reach their first final since 2013 when they lost to rivals AFC Leopards but according to the Portuguese coach they must be cautious against a Bidco side they beat 3-1 in the first round of the Premier League season.
What has been said?
“It is not going to be an easy game, it is going to be a different story, a different game in football the story never repeats, totally different type of game, the emotions are different and of course I expect one tough game,” Vaz Pinto told Goal on Sunday.
On how prepared they are, Pinto said: “We did not have enough time to prepare, we played last Saturday and Friday we took the second jab of Covid-19 vaccine and yesterday [Saturday] it was short training to recover the players.
Goal Kenya.
“The players need 72 hours to totally recover for one game and because of that our focus was the recovery of the players ahead of the match.”
Asked if the small time they had to prepare for the game will affect the team’s results, the Portuguese said: “No...what I think it will affect us and affect Bidco too, not only for us Bidco played last Thursday, and for us is the same, but of course, we have played more matches than Bidco since the league resumed.
“It is a struggle we have, we can’t cry but we need to look into this game with confidence and respect for Bidco because they have a good team and good coach and of course good players.”
Injury concerns for Gor Mahia
On injury concerns and whether striker Tito Okello has returned from South Sudanese national team assignment, Pinto said: “Tiko [Okello] will not be available, he is with the national team until June 21, and we have only one injury of right full-back Kevin [Wesonga], only Kevin is out.”
Before Gor Mahia takes on Bidco, rivals AFC Leopards will play the first semi-final at the same venue against Division One side Equity Bank seeking to reach the final for the first time since 2017.