NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 6 – Kenyan players abroad were in action for their respective clubs over the weekend with 23-year old defender Joseph ‘Crouch’ Okumu continuing to shine for his Swedish top tier club IF Elfsborg.
Elfsborg won 1-0 against giants Malmo FF with Frederik Holst scoring the lone goal in the first minute of first half added time.
Okumu who joined the club towards the end of last season played the entire game keeping a clean sheet, despite a 23rd minute yellow card dotting his game.
The victory took Okumu’s side to fourth spot with 10 points, three behind leaders Norrkoping after six rounds of matches left.
Meanwhile, midfielder Erick Johannah clocked 64 minutes before coming off for Mikael Josh Marques as his second-tier side Jonkopings Sodra won 3-1 at home against Akropolis with and own goal from Oscar Perhsson in between goals from Jesper Svensson and Edin Hamidovic.
The victory took ‘Mapake’s’ side to seventh in the standings with six points from four games.
In England, Ayub Timbe had some healthy playing time, coming on after 60 minutes in place of Pele as Reading won 5-0 away to Luton Town.
Ivorian Yakou Meite scored four goals with George Puscas adding a fifth as Reading moved to 14th in the 24 team Championship log.
In Japan, Michael Olunga’s Kashiwa Reysol lost 1-0 as the J1 league resumed following a three-month break. The league was halted after just one match due to the COVID-19 pandemic but resumed this weekend under strict containment protocols.
Olunga played the entire match as Tsuyoshi Wataname scoring the loan goal in the 62nd minute, just two after Kashiwa’s Richardson was sent off for a second bookable offense.
In neighboring Tanzania, Francis Kahata came off the bench in the second half as Simba SC played to a 0-0 draw with Ndanda FC. The Wekundu wa Msimbazi have already won the league and are just running down the fixtures.
