After grinding out a hard-fought 1-0 win over their more fancied rivals, Ulinzi Stars at Utalii grounds on Saturday, Wazito head coach Francis Kimanzi reckons they have ultimately found their footing in the Kenyan Premier League.
The victory, albeit slim, was the biggest of the season and definitely a huge plus for the moneybags who waddled into the encounter massively weighed down by a four-match losing streak.
The win, Kimanzi says, has rekindled their remote hopes of a possible top-flight silverware after a lackadaisical show in the preceding season where they wound up in the middle of the table.
“Every team sets objectives early in the season and that's exactly what we did. We now have a competitive squad and it is realistic to start thinking about charging for the title.”
Wazito experienced a torrid start to the season, unexpectedly fumbling in their opening encounter against debutants Talanta who held them to a surprise one-all draw at Ruaraka.
Matters worsened thereafter as they helplessly tumbled down to the rump of the table after a string of defeats.
Before gunning down the soldiers, Wazito had crashed 2-0 to champions Tusker at Ruaraka grounds on October 30.
Kimanzi attributed their disastrous run to a disjointed squad that had not gelled well enough after the club plunged vast resources into the transfer market for fresh talent.
“Initially, we had issues with new players struggling to fit in but I'm impressed they have worked hard enough to catch up,” said Kimanzi.
“Whenever you have a new set of players, it takes quite some time to gel the squad and establish a winning side,” he added.
Kimanzi says bagging maximum points against their Nakuru-based rivals can aptly be described as a huge boost to their campaign.
“Beating a team like Ulinzi is not that easy. They are among the most established clubs we have in the country with a history of winning the league,” said Kimanzi.
That notwithstanding, Kimanzi regretted that the two-week break that was imposed by the FKF caretaker committee prior to Saturday's encounters had slowed down the momentum of the competition.
“Every turmoil presents some sort of setbacks ant this one wasn't any different. The break has only served to slow down the momentum the teams had already gathered prior o the suspension of the competition by the FKF caretaker committee,” said Kimanzi.
He weighed in on the performance of Kenyan sides on the continental stage, saying both Tusker and Gor Mahia had exhibited a great deal of improvement despite their both bowing out at the playoffs stage.
“Judging by the slim aggregates it's quite obvious we posted good results even though we eventually exited the stage. That speaks positively about how far the country has come in terms of matching international standards.”
“We only need to see what other countries are doing differently to beat us and then make the necessary adjustments,” said Kimanzi.
