Birthday boy Lopaga debuts for Dynamo Brest in Belarus

On the day he celebrated his 21st birthday, Kenyan forward Josphat Lopaga made his debut for Belarusian side Dynamo-Brest on Saturday night in Belarus' top-flight league, the Vysshaya League.

However, it was not the perfect way to play his first league game for the club as they went on to lose by a solitary goal in the hands of FC Isloch Minsk region.

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After being unveiled at the club earlier this week and given the green light to feature in the league, the former Posta Rangers player was named on the bench and was introduced in the 64th minute with the scores barren, coming on for Sergei Kislyak.

However, six minutes after his introduction, the opponent broke the deadlock through Aleksandr Makas and went on to hold on to the lead to the final whistle.

Lopaga joined the Belarusian side from Omani outfit Dhofar Club on a year-and-a-half contract that will keep him at the club until the end of the 2024 season.

He had moved to Oman alongside his compatriot and former national U17 team captain Alphonce Omija but did not hit the ground running.

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Despite impressing during his trial period at the club, his move to Europe took longer than anticipated thanks to legal issues occasioned by delays by Dhofar Club.

Lopaga will be hoping to get more minutes under his belt next Sunday when Brest take on fourth-placed Slavia Mozyr in a league match on the road.