'We are still in the title race' Shabana coach bullish despite AFC Leopards' whitewash
Reading Time: 2min | Mon. 02.03.26. | 21:14
The Glamour Boys endured a shellacking that ended in a 5-1 scoreline against Ingwe when the two sides met in a league match on Sunday, 1 March
Shabana FC head coach Peter Okidi has reiterated that his team is in the FKF Premier League title race despite the bruising 5-1 annihilation at the hands of Kenyan giants AFC Leopards.
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The Glamour Boys endured a shellacking that ended in a 5-1 scoreline against Ingwe when the two sides met in a league match on Sunday, 1 March.
Prior to the encounter, Shabana had 40 points, nine shy of league leaders Gor Mahia and tied with AFC Leopards, but had a chance of leapfrogging Ingwe to second as well as narrowing K’Ogalo’s lead to six points.
Despite failing to achieve either of the two possibilities, Okidi explained why his club is still in the title race.
“We are still in the title race because we are yet to face Gor Mahia and might reduce the gap to six points then, so the league is not yet over,” said Okidi.
“It was a learning process and a wake-up call to our team. We will strive to do better and continue with the title race,” he added.
Okidi was also put to task over his team’s vulnerability on transitions and counterattacks, which Leopards exploited and resulted in three of the five goals.
“It is not a worry. For teams that want to win the league, they do less defending and more attacking. Fans also come to watch good football, which we have to give.
Nevertheless, much as we conceded from transitions, we also created many chances from the same and maybe what we need to work on is to convert those chances and then be compact in defending,” he explained.
The coach also took time to console the Shabana fanbase, who left Nyayo Stadium a frustrated lot, even as their unbeaten away record was brought to an end.
“We are sorry to the fans for the underwhelming performance, but urge them to keep supporting us, and we promise we will return smiles to their faces.”