Gor Mahia midfielder Ernest Wendo goes toe to toe with Everton’s Tom Davies during their SportPesa Trophy friendly match at Goodison Park on November 6, 2018.
LIVERPOOL, United Kingdom, Nov 8 – Gor Mahia midfielder Ernest Wendo says he was thrilled by his performance against Everton at Goodison Park in the SportPesa Trophy friendly, underscoring that it has motivated him to do even more when he goes back home.
Wendo was one of the few stand-out performers on a night Gor suffered a 4-0 defeat,but says as a team they choose to concentrate on the positives and lessons picked from the tie.
“The game was very okay and I was really happy with my performance. For us it was more of a learning curve. We have seen the difference between us and the rest of the world and when we go home, these are some of the lessons we take with us,” Wendo told Capital Sport.
The combative midfielder added; “The biggest lesson we have picked is that we need to minimize on the mistakes we make each game. We saw it that one mistake, you are punished and it is a goal.”
His sentiments were shared by left-back Shafik Batambuze who also put in a good shift on his debut for K’Ogalo having signed from Tanzania’s Singida United.
Gor Mahia left back Shafik Batambuze tracks down Everton’s Turkish striker Cenk Tosun during their SportPesa Trophy friendly match at Goodison Park on November 6, 2018.
“To be honest they were better than us. We tried our best and that was their day. We have picked lessons going back home and the experience will also give us a lot of confidence moving forward,” The Ugandan said.
Looking back at the game, the two conceded that Everton were at a better level than them with Wendo pointing out at the beginning, they took too long to settle their nerves down and adjust to the pitch as well as the evening breeze.
Most players though did not have the right kind of boots for the soft Everton grass and ended up losing their stability time and again and Wendo says this was a mistake on their end.
“The game was tough and at the beginning, pressure was there but we came together as a team and talked about it, told each other to relax and play like the coach wanted. We had some good moments as well,” Wendo said.
Shafik added; “They were better than us because if you look at them, they are in the middle of the season and their fitness is sharp. We tried our best noting that the league just ended. For me, I have stayed for three months without playing but I was training on my own. We have learnt and next time, we will come back a better side.”
The two hope they get back home a better side and look on winning all available trophies as well as perform above expectation in the CAF Competitions.
The team jets back to Nairobi on Friday evening and will head for a very short break before shifting attention to the start of the new season on December 8.
-Timothy Olobulu is reporting from London-
