Sofapaka head coach Zedekiah 'Zico' Otieno has warned their FKF Cup quarterfinal opponent Police FC to prepare for a fierce battle at Dandora Stadium on Saturday.
The two sides will renew rivalry for the second time this season, having previously locked horns in a Kenyan Premier League thriller in which the law enforcers staged a dramatic comeback to win 2-1.
Despite suffering the loss at the hands of their nemesis last Sunday, Otieno expressed optimism ahead of their crunch tie, further reiterating their desire to garnish their cabinet with the country's second-biggest silverware.
"This is a knockout match and knockout matches are very different from league games. It's the team that wants it most that will carry the day," Otieno remarked.
"For us, we are trying to prepare as well as we can so that we will be ready come Saturday. It will be a very different ballgame compared to the one we played in the league match against them last weekend."
Otieno said they will build on the wealth of experience they gleaned from earlier encounters to bolster their title aspirations.
Sofapaka’s incredible journey in the tournament includes two penalty shootouts against Silibwet and Bungoma Stars.
"We had a very tough run-up to this stage. We had a difficult match against Silibwet in Bomet where we rallied back from a goal down and managed to force a draw and eventually won on a penalty shootout," Otieno said
"We met Bungoma Allstars in our next match, a team that had beaten both Bandari and Talanta. Again we managed to rally back from two goals down at halftime and went on to win on post-match penalties."
The seasoned gaffer reckons his charges have proven beyond reasonable doubt that they possess the mojo to secure the title after overcoming such vicious challenges to reach the quarterfinals.
"That shows our character as a team and we shall try to improve on that run on Saturday and try as much as we can to win the game in regular time. But in the event of a penalty shootout, we are also prepared," he said.
