Wajir All Stars FC head coach, Ahmed Abdullahi has his sights set on national glory after a convincing 2-0 win over Lyon 04 FC 2-0 in the regional finals held on Sunday at Garissa University.
Mursal Abdinasir broke the deadlock and Mohamed Adan executed a free-kick to perfection to seal the win in the second half.
“I hope that we post good results at the national finals. It will be challenging but going by today’s display, we will go far,” noted Abdullahi.
He attributed their win to a tactical switch that shut out Lyons’ attack through the midfield.
“In the first half, we played in a normal 4-4-2 formation. In the second, while leading 1-0, I knew Lyon would attack more. I switched to a 3-5-2 to control the midfield and prevent their attacks,” he noted.
Wajir qualified for the regional finals after beating Marina FC of Mandera 3-1 on spot kicks on Saturday in a match played at Garissa University.
“I feel proud today," said Abdullahi. "This is my fourth time in the tournament. In the first edition, I was a player for Wajir. In the second, I was an assistant coach then a coach in the third and fourth editions,” he noted.
He praised his players for a great fight despite suffering from fatigue.
“Yesterday’s (Saturday) match was more competitive than today’s. Some players were fatigued and we even took some to the hospital,” he said.
“Despite being the away team, we went into the match with a clean mentality. We were unfazed by their fans or them talking before the match that they would beat us.”
Wajir took home a Sh250,000 cash prize from sponsors Safaricom while Lyon bagged Sh150,000.
Individual performers Mohammed Faisal of Wajir All Stars (goalkeeper), Mohammed Adan and Mursan Abdi (joint-top scorers) and Hussein Yusuf of Lyon (most valuable player) received Sh30,000 each.
Present during the finals was Garissa County Governor, Nathif Jama, who said: “It's a privilege for Garissa to host the North Eastern region finals. Any team, be it from Wajir, Mandera or Garissa that wins in the finals represents all of us.”
The North Eastern regional finals saw the introduction of GPS Sports Vests from IMG.
The vests are AI-powered to improve players’ performance and open up scouting opportunities. They are used to capture data about players, including distance covered, speed, power plays and power scores among others.
IMG’s Dennis Murimi said: “The vests are worn by top teams in Europe and other nations. This is a first test in Kenya. It’s a game-changer since it will help coaches gather player’s stats for improvement purposes,” he noted.
A total of 286 teams took part, including 60 from Garissa, 115 from Mandera and 111 from Wajir.
