Gor Mahia eyeing yet another foreign coach to replace Vaz Pinto

 

Football Kenya Federation Betway Cup winners Gor Mahia will be shopping for another foreign coach at the end of the season following the shock exit of Portuguese tactician Carlos Manuel Vaz Pinto.

K'Ogalo assistant coach Sammy 'Pamzo' Omollo is expected to steer the team in the remaining nine FKF Premier League matches with this season's title already out of reach for the defending champions.

"We shall be looking for a new foreign coach at the end of the season. Following Vaz Pinto resignation, assistant coach Sammy Omollo will assume the coaching role until the end of the season," club treasurer Dolphina Odhiambo told Nation Sport.

Vaz Pinto, who joined the club on January 2021, resigned just after six months in charge, with reports suggesting he had found a better deal with a lower-tier team back in Portugal.

His last league match was a 2-1 loss to league leaders Tusker, where he categorically stated that this season's league title is beyond K'Ogalo's reach as they sit 11 points adrift of the brewers.

He ended the club's nine year Cup drought as they edged out their arch rivals AFC Leopards on post match penalties to lift the Betway Cup to qualify for next season's Caf Confederation Cup.

He also won the Football Kenya Federation Premier League Coach of the month of May after leading Gor to win all its four matches in the same period.

"Due to personal reasons which President Ambrose Rachier respected for a long time, it is time to end my connection to Gor Mahia FC," said Vaz Pinto, while also calling on club's fans to continue supporting the local giants.

However, it is no secret that Gor Mahia could have had a huge task shouldering Vaz Pinto's salary due financial constraints, after sponsors Betsafe cut down its sponsorship for the club from Sh55 million to Sh30 million.

The 47-year-old tactician joined Gor on January 10 after the local giants parted ways with Brazilian coach Roberto Oliveira.

The Brazilian lacked Caf A coaching licence and couldn't lead  the club in continental matches forcing him to leave barely two months in charge at K'Ogalo's camp.

In his short stint at Gor, Vaz Pinto managed nine wins in the league, five losses and three draws.

However, he failed to take K'Ogalo past the preliminary stage of both Caf Champions League and Caf Confederation Cup.

Gor were dumped out of Caf Champions League by Algerian giants CR Belouizdad in January, while Zambian Super League side Napsa Stars knocked them out in the Caf Confederation Cup in February.

What remains unclear is whether the 'leaving by mutual consent' agreement will be binding considering former tactician Steven Polack also left in the same way, but would later take Gor Mahia to Fifa over unpaid salary arrears, which had accrued to Sh1.6 million.

In the past five years, Gor has had seven foreign coaches, some of whom have left in a controversial manner.

Apart from Vaz Pinto, Polack and Oliveira, others who have left are Hassan Oktay, Dylan Kerr, Jose Marcelo Ferreira and Frank Nuttal.    BY DAILY NATION