Days after losing their shirt sponsor, Coast Stima head coach Paul Ogai is sweating over the future of his striker Erick Ombija and other senior players at the club.
The coastal outfit, who ply their trade in the National Super League were served with shock after shirt sponsor Kenya Power formally withdrew their financial support.
Ogai fears that Ombija who by the time the 2019-2020 season was cancelled was among the top scorers in the second tier, will be easily lured to sign elsewhere.
Ogai said keeping the former Gor Mahia man and at the same time failing to pay for his service will be unjust.
The club has already parted ways with the duo of Dennis Magige and Iddi Hassan who were on loan from Shield Cup holders Bandari.
"If we don't get another sponsor, it will be hard to convince him to stay. I am certain he has started receiving offers from other clubs, thanks to his performance and we may likely lose him and other players who were outstanding last season. Sourcing for his replacement is another uphill task considering that we are now vulnerable," said the former Western Stima coach.
Besides losing Ombija, Ogai is also worried that their quest for automatic promotion may be further delayed should they fail to nail down another sponsor.
The club had gathered steam in their push to finish within the promotion slots last season but the move by the federation to conclude the season after the first case of coronavirus was reported, punctured their dream.
"A lot of things are likely to change now that we do not have a sponsor. If I retain all the players I have and get an alternative source of funding, then we will make it. But if the status quo remains, we will most likely lose players and those will remain will be less motivated hence sailing through will be tough," he observed
Meanwhile Ogai is pleading with Kenya Power to rescind their decision to terminate the teams' sponsorship especially during this period of coronavirus. He said more than 100 families have been affected by the move.
"More than 100 families were benefiting from the sponsorship and I urge KPLC to reconsider their decision. The government has been promising to support youths and sports and I am hoping they will intervene," he added.
