Gor Face Nyasa Bullets As K.Sharks Meet Arta Solar In CAF Draw
9th November 2018
The 17-time SPL champions were eliminated by Esperance de Tunis in this year's Champions League contest
- SportPesa Premier League (SPL) champions Gor Mahia FC will face Nyasa Big Bullets of Malawi in the 2018/2019 Confederations of African Football (CAF)Champions League preliminary round that kicks-off on November 27
- Both Gor and Sharks will start their opening round campaign at home in Nairobi on November 27 and 28 before their return legs on December 4 and 5 in Blantyre and Carta in that order
- Gor topped SPL with 75 points to be crowned 17 time champions while Nyasa Big Bullets are currently topping the Malawi Premier League table with 61 points after 25 games
CAIRO, Egypt- SportPesa Premier League (SPL) champions, Gor Mahia FC, will face Nyasa Big Bullets FC of Malawi in the 2018/2019 Confederation of African Football (CAF) Champions League preliminary round that kicks-off on November 27.
The draw by the continental football governing body held on Friday also pits SportPesa Shield Champions, Kariobangi Sharks FC, against Arta Solar 7 SC of Djibouti in the CAF Confederation Cup.
“We don’t know much about our rivals. We are already training hard for this competition, we are perfecting the tactics we believe will help us to grind results against the opponents,” Sharks head coach, William Muluya, told SportPesa News.
Both Gor and Sharks will start their opening round campaign at home in Nairobi on November 27 and 28 before their return legs on December 4 and 5 in Blantyre and Carta in that order.
Gor overcame SuperSport United FC of South Africa in this year’s Champions League play-off to sail into the preliminaries with a 2-2 aggregate, setting them up against Tunisian outfit, Esperance de Tunis.
Esperance forced a 0-0 draw at Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos before knocking Gor out of the competition with a volatile 1-0 win in Tunis.
The defeat relegated Gor to the CAF Confederation Cup where they finished third in Group D with eight points after going down 1-2 against USM Alger away in Algeria on the final day.
Head coach, Dylan Kerr, believes his side, that has been on a one-week tour of England where they played nine time English Premier League champions, Everton FC, learnt great lessons in the championships which he hopes to put into use in the new season.
Gor topped SPL with 75 points to be crowned 17 time champions while Nyasa Big Bullets are currently at the apex of Malawi Premier League table with 61 points after 25 games.
Penned contracts
Muluya, who will be making a debut in the continental showpiece, said his objective is to reach the Confederation Cup group stage.
“I will be taking one game at a time, my hope is to qualify for the pool phase then starts plotting for the quarters,” he underlined.
Muluya has reinforced his side with Ugandan forward, George Abege, he signed in mid-season and John Otieno contracted from Nakuru All Stars FC.
“I believe they will add depth into the squad, we want to leave no stone unturned as we tackle the club from Djibouti,” he underlined.
Muluya will also be bagging on James Mazembe (winger), Sydney Lokale (striker) and custodian Brian Bwire who earned their call-ups to the national U-23 side, Emerging Stars, due to face Mauritius in the African U23 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifier slated for November 14.
Kariobangi Sharks have also penned contracts with Finlay Osoro and Peter James from Dagoretti High School in Nairobi.
CAF Champions League Draw
Gor Mahia FC vs Nyasa Big Bullets (Malawi)
CAF Confederation Cup Draw
Kariobangi Sharks vs Arta Solar 7 (Djibouti)