Akhulia breaks silence on future after Bidco relegation
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Reading Time: 3min | Tue. 19.05.26. | 12:19
The Thika-based club suffered relegation to the National Super League last weekend following their 1-0 loss to Shabana
Long-serving Bidco United head coach Anthony Akhulia has hinted at a possible departure from the club following the team’s relegation from the Football Kenya Federation Premier League.
Bidco’s fate was sealed on Sunday, 17 May afternoon after a painful 1-0 defeat to Shabana FC at Wang'uru Stadium.
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Second-half penalty strike by Congolese forward Asis Batshi Mambote eight minutes from time, proved decisive as the Thika-based side officially dropped back to the National Super League.
The defeat brought an end to Bidco's six-year stay in the top flight, having earned promotion to the premier division in 2020 after years of steady growth under Akhulia’s stewardship.
Speaking in a candid interview with Azam TV after the match, the tactician openly admitted that his future at the club now hangs in the balance, revealing frustrations over the environment he has worked in during recent seasons.
“Well, in regards to me staying put, that will be determined by the club because the club has management. As a coach, I have ambitions. I would love to be in a team that values and gives me space to work and the right support, not just one with a lot of issues. Bidco, I can attest, has had its fair share of issues, but we did our best,” Akhulia disclosed.
Should he eventually walk away at the end of the season, it would mark the conclusion of an extraordinary near two-decade journey with the club, a relationship that began far away from the dugout.
Akhulia first joined Bidco in 2007 as both a player and casual labourer.
However, persistent injuries prematurely disrupted his playing career, forcing him to gradually transition into the club’s technical setup.
The soft-spoken tactician steadily climbed through the ranks, serving in multiple roles including kit manager, team manager, trainer and assistant coach before eventually taking charge of the senior team on an interim basis in 2017 following the departure of Robert Matano.
He was later confirmed as the club’s substantive head coach and went on to script one of the greatest achievements in Bidco’s history by guiding the side to their maiden FKF Premier League promotion in 2020.
Despite that success, the 2025/26 campaign turned into a frustrating and disappointing battle for survival, with the the club struggling for consistency throughout the season.
Reflecting on the relegation, Akhulia who doubles up as Kenya U20 assistant coach did not hold back in his assessment of the squad, pointing fingers at repeated individual mistakes and questioning the commitment levels within the playing unit.
“I think in the games we have played, it has always been the coaching staff pushing, but the players haven’t been showing it. Like today, we did well in the first half, then the players caused a mistake that led to such.
With such acts where the coach is doing much and the playing unit are not showing up, it is mind-blowing. We have been relegated, which I had foreseen happening all along looking at how the players have been playing and conceding in a worrying manner,” he stated.
With relegation now confirmed, Bidco head into their final two league matches with little left to fight for apart from pride.
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Akhulia further revealed that even the club’s future structure remains uncertain, saying the decision on whether the team will continue operating in its current form now rests entirely with the management.
“The team has hierarchy, so it all goes back to the management on how they will handle the situation, whether the team will remain in place or not,” he added.
For a man who dedicated nearly two decades of his life to building Bidco United from the grassroots to the top tier, the looming separation now appears increasingly inevitable as the club faces an uncertain future in the second division.