NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 6 – In the wake of increasing speculation he could be on his way out of AFC Leopards four months after joining the side, Briton Stewart Hall has revealed he has received three offers to leave the club, but has reiterated ditching the 13-time Kenyan Premier League champions is out of question.
Speaking to Capital Sport after his side’s 0-0 draw with Ulinzi Stars on Wednesday in Machakos, Hall dismissed claims he is leaving, with Tanzanian giants Yanga SC said to be his next destination.
“I can confirm that I have three offers to leave AFC, across different continents, but Yanga is not one of them,” Hall said when quizzed about the departure rumors.
“It is not about ditching anyone. It is about doing what you think is good for you. At the end of the day I am happy here, I am happy working with this group of players because they respond to me; we have a good relationship. I am happy working with my technical bench who I think are excellent. Why would I want to run away in a hurry?” posed the former Azam FC coach.
There has been jitters among the Ingwe fans that the tactician might exit especially bearing in mind the last time he worked in Kenya with Sofapaka, he left barely a month in after Azam came back for him.
“Those were different circumstances. That was because someone forgot to pay me and someone offered me money and I went. This time, no chance.. not at all.. I am 100 per cent happy here.” The tactician declared.
He has had a positive start at AFC Leopards in the new season, leading the side to the top of the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) standings on seven points after three matches.
The tactician is confident the team is well oiled to break a 19-year wait for the KPL title, saying he has a great group which he believes has the hunger and drive to go for the crown.
However, he said he needs to add a bit of strength in the June transfer window to make the side fully compact, but adds he is happy with the unit he has managed to put together after the January window.
“I do see the hunger in the players. So far we have had one transfer window and we have another in June and a chance to look at what we need. If we carry on as we are then we add some strength I think we can challenge for the title,” the tactician stated.
“If we look at how we have started and how we were last season, then I am convinced that we are in a good place,” he added.
After winning back-to-back matches against Nakumatt FC and Nzoia Sugar, AFC Leopards dropped points for the first time this season when they played out to a barren draw with Ulinzi Stars.
Hall blamed this partly to fatigue as they played barely 72 hours after the tough Nzoia match as well as injuries to some of the players.
“I’ve got three players carrying little injuries and we’ve got Kiongera (Mungai) missing. I don’t think we were dominant upfront. They (Ulinzi) are physically strong and pound for pound the strongest in the league and it was too easy for them when we put in crosses.”
“Sometimes we needed to put the ball on the ground more and play little one-two passes which I feel we didn’t do well. But I can’t blame them because we are a young team and still learning.”
AFC Leopards will now shift their attention to the Sunday afternoon match against bogey side Chemelil Sugar at the Moi Stadium in Kisumu and they will have a session at the Camp Toyoyo Ground on Friday evening to get them more accustomed to artificial turf.