Former Harambee Stars captain Dennis Oliech could be on his way back to reviving his football career as he started training with Kenyan champions Gor Mahia yesterday.
Oliech has been linked with at least three Kenyan Premier League sides over a couple of months and linking up with Gor Mahia, who are keen to offer the former Auxerre man a contract could see opposition defenders fret at the sight of the once speedy forward. According to Gor’s team manager Jolawi Obondo, Oliech is having his physical fitness assessed and will land himself a contract if he proves he can be a good addition to a not so sharp K’Ogalo frontline.
Oliech, Kenya’s all time top scorer has had a illustrious career since he left Mathare United almost two decades ago, signing for Qatari side Al Arabi in 2003 before crossing to France where he had stints with, in addition to Auxerre, Nantes and Ajaccio.
In 2015, he joined Dubai SC in United Arab Emirates where he plied his trade to 2016 before announcing his retirement. However, two years later, the ‘Dennis the Menace’ as he is fondly referred to, is working on his return to competitive football.
The forward was rumoured to have sunk to regrettable lows in recent times but he has stood the test of time and is once againr eady to prove that he still has a spring on his foot.
Oliech has 34 goals for Harambee Stars and was part of the squad which lastly qualified for the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations, courtesy of his solo strike against Cape Verde in the qualifying rounds an year earlier.
His last appearance in the national team came in 2015 during the 2017 AFCON qualifiers where Kenya lost 2-1 to Zambia at Nyayo Stadium.
“He trained with us today for the first time and he looked sharp. We will add him to the team if he meets the fitness demands,” said Obondo.