Olunga unfazed by Ronaldo, Mane ahead of Champions League clash

By Tony Kipkorir

Harambee Stars skipper Michael Olunga has revealed that he is not fazed by the prospect of facing a star-studded Al-Nassr when his Al Duhail side take on the Saudi Arabian moneybags in a crunch Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League group match slated for Tuesday night, October 7.

Al-Nassr boasts of big names including multiple Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, former Liverpool goal machine Sadio Mane and former Manchester City defender Aymeric Laporte within their ranks.

Speaking in a press conference staged at the First Park Stadium, the 2015 Kenyan Premier League Player of the Year stated that his club will not battle it out with individual players as they seek to get a result that will enhance their chances of progressing past the group stage.

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“Al-Nasr has a number of distinguished players who have succeeded in winning many titles in their professional career, but we will face a complete system and we will not face every player alone.

Our motive for the game is to achieve a positive result that will help us continue our Asian journey,” explained Olunga.

The 29-year-old added that he and his teammates have prepared themselves well and they cannot wait for the action to begin. 

“Our preparations for this match were good, we are ready for it and everyone respects the capabilities of the Al-Nasr players.

We know that we have to work on ourselves in order to present a strong match in a collective manner,” the ex-Gor Mahia forward added while assuring Al-Duhail fans that they will do everything in their power to post a positive result. 

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On his part, Olunga’s manager Christopher Galtier, the former PSG manager who took the job earlier this month, acknowledged the quality of Al-Nassr’s dead ball specialists. 

“I watched Al-Nassr’s last match in the league and saw how they executed direct free kicks and how they succeeded in using them to reach the goal, whether from Talisca or Ronaldo.

We worked with the team’s players on the necessity of avoiding committing violations in front of the penalty area,” commented the former PSG boss.

Al-Duhail currently occupies the third spot in the group with one point, five less than leaders Al-Nassr. Iranian side Persepolis are in second spot on 3 points before Duhail and Istqlol Dushanbe who are 3rd and 4th respectively on a point apiece.

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Last season Al Duhail reached the semifinals of the tournament but have struggled to replicate those heights so far this season.

Olunga has also been crowned the top scorer in the competition in the 2021 edition where he scored 9 goals to win the Golden Boot that year.

The match will be held at the magnificent Al-Awal Park Stadium located in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh and will kick off at 2100EAT.

In the other Group E fixture, Iran’s Persepolis will be looking to cement their second spot when they take on Dushanbe.