KCB forward, Paul Mungai Kiongera when he was presented with his SPL Fans Player of the Month for August Award on September 15, 2015. PHOTO/Courtesy
NAIROBI, Kenya, July 6- AFC Leopards new signing Paul Kiongera believes he can get back to top form despite suffering a lull in his career for the past six months with Tanzanian outfit Simba SC.
Kiongera, a former KCB striker decided not to renew his contract with the Tanzanian giants and instead chose to move back home and Leopards pounced on his free agent status.
The forward first joined Simba in 2014 but no sooner had he began his career with the ‘Wekundu wa Msimbazi’ than tragedy struck when he picked up a serious knee injury that saw him undergo surgery in India.
He was loaned back to KCB at the start of last season in a bid to get back his match fitness before returning to Simba who still believed in his abilities and saw him as their perfect striker.
“AFC Leopards is a big club and I know the demands that come with playing here. We didn’t have such a good start in the second leg but I am certain we will bounce back. At the moment, I am working hard to integrate with the rest of the players and it has been made easy because everyone is welcoming,” the striker noted.
“I wouldn’t want to put up specific targets but what I would want to work on is being at my best, scoring and help the team perform well,” he added.
Kiongera proved the same during his time at KCB, scoring 11 goals for the Bankers in their relegation season after playing part in 16 matches.
However, his return to the Tanzanian capital was not as successful as expected and he ended up being in the periphery of the first team, missing out on accumulating vital playing minutes.
He is now ready to burry those woes and focus on getting back to top form that saw him being one of the most dreaded forwards in the Kenyan Premier League.
“It has been a difficult time in Tanzania but all that is now in the past. For any player, getting playing time is the most important thing and that is why I decided to come back home and look to play more to get back to the top,” Kiongera stated.
The striker made his debut for Ingwe over the weekend in their 1-0 loss to Chemelil Sugar and he believes despite the false start to his life at the club, better things will come his way.
Speaking to Capital Sport, head coach Ivan Minnaert is upbeat Kiongera is a positive addition to the team and believes he will give him a lot of options moving forward and will ease the goal scoring burden off Kepha Aswani.
“This last match was a bit difficult for him and most of the players because he worked only a few days with us and still the understanding between him and the rest was not as perfect. But he is a good player to the squad and this week we are working on cohesion and we should expect better over the weekend,” Minnaert said.
Ingwe who are placed 11th on the Kenyan Premier League standings will face Thika United at the Mumias Sports Complex this weekend and hope to bounce back to winning ways.
