After landing a star-studded list of new acquisitions in the off-season transfer window, Kenya Police head coach Sammy ‘Pamzo’ Omollo reckons the law enforcers are all set to gun down their opponents in the coming season.
The gaffer and his charges will be hoping for a better performance than in the preceding season, where they managed a ninth finish on the log.
“I'm confident we will have an improved season given the quality of players we signed in the last transfer window. The good thing is that we started our preparations early and from the look of things in the few friendlies we've been involved in, the players look quite promising,” said Omollo.
Omollo said his players had mustered the confidence needed to charge for their maiden topflight title after gunning down City Stars to win Elite Pre-Season Cup at Nyayo Stadium last month.
The win against ‘Simba Wa Nairobi saw the law enforcers take home Sh1 million and a trophy.
“The Elite Preseason Cup was important because we had a chance to gauge our strength against rival Kenyan Premier League clubs and even won the tournament.”
The law enforcers went on a recruitment rampage in the last transfer window and Omollo said the move is aimed at strengthening their flanks as they train their guns for the coming season.
“We already had a competitive squad given we did a lot of signing in the last two transfer windows but we are still open for new players,” Omollo said.
Former Simba SC midfielder Francis Kahata headlines the star-studded list of new acquisitions who also include Clifton Miheso, Musa Mohammed, Elvis Rupia, Harun Shakava, and Eric Juma.
Others are former bankers Baraka Badi and Reagan Otieno, former Mathare United goalkeeper Job Ochieng, Marvin Nabwire (AFC Leopards) and Patilla Omoto (Kariobangi Sharks).
While appraising the performance of the preceding season, Omollo reckoned the league was competitive and experience played a key role in handing Tusker their second consecutive title.
The gaffer believes they wound up the season on a high after their torrid start to the season.
“Generally, we performed well. We went unbeaten in our last eight matches, registering eight wins and eight draws," Omollo said.
He added: “We could have secured a better position in the standings if all our players attended practice consistently. But ten of our players had to attend police training, only showing up on the eve of our matches.”
Omollo was appointed to his position in March following the departure of veteran tactician John Bobby Ogolla.
The changes came in the wake of a miserable run that left the KPL debutants struggling to find a footing in the cutthroat top-flight competition, even after plunging vast resources into the transfer market in search of quality and experience.
