NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 13 – Having played as defensive partners together for four years at the national team Harambee Stars, newly appointed Kenya Police FC coach Sammy ‘Pamzo’ Omollo hopes his new partnership with Musa Otieno as assistant coach will yield the same success they enjoyed on the pitch in their playing days.
Omollo was named new Police coach after the club fored John Bobby Ogolla following a string of poor results.
“We used to joke that one day when we get to work together with a team, it would be one of the most successful teams. Now it has come to pass and I am very excited,” Omollo told Capital Sport.
He added; “Musa is a person that I have known for so long and I know what he is capable of. He has worked outside the country and the knowledge he has is immense. I am really happy to be working with him and I hope that we can enjoy so much success together as a unit.”
Omollo’s previous working post was an assistant coach at Gor Mahia FC having joined the record Kenyan champions following his departure from Posta Rangers.
Musa has not been coaching in the top flight but has been working with his organization Kick off to Hope where he has an Academy across all youth levels. He also recently graduated with a CAF B licence.
The two are expected to turn around the fortunes at Police, the club having failed to sparkle despite marquee signings that landed at the club both at the start of the season and in January.
“I am really excited to be coming here and I was welcomed really well. In all Premier League clubs I have coached, I have never received such a warm welcome anywhere,” said Omollo.
The Premier League debutants went big on their signings, bringing in the likes of Clifton Miheso, Musa Mohamed, Duke Abuya and Duncan Otieno at the start of the season while the likes of Harun Shakava, Francis Kahata and Elvis Rupia joined in January.
But on the pitch, the quality on paper has struggled to show itself.
Omollo believes he has a good team at his disposal and is optimistic he can help them turn things around.
“Looking at the team, we have a very good squad with experienced players. We have good quality to challenge for a good finish this season. But I just want to put in belief in the players that they can do it. I have watched their last two games and I believe they are a good team,”
“I have noted some things that we would like to improve and one of them is the defense. They have been leaking a lot of goals and we will start working from back moving forward. We also want to play good football and I believe we have the capability to do so,” he added.
His first match in charge will be an interesting one as he leads out Police to take on his immediate former employer, Gor Mahia, when the two sides clash at the Moi Stadium in Kisumu on Sunday afternoon.
“It will be a very interesting match because these are players I coached just a month ago. But I expect a tough match because Gor has a very good team. For us, we just want to ensure we start well and in the minimum get a point,” said Omollo.
Police have gone for seven matches without winning and their last victory was on January 15, beating relegation fighting Mathare United 2-1.
They are placed 13th in the standings with 24 points and have won only five of their 21 fixtures.
