Zico returns to Gor as assistant coach

Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno has returned to Gor as assistant coach.PHOTO/FILE

NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 22- Immediate former Posta Rangers head coach Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno has returned to his former club Gor Mahia as an assistant coach to Brazilian Jose Marcelo Ferreira, chairman Ambrose Rachier has said.

Otieno, who played and captained K’Ogalo during his playing days had two separate coaching stints at the club in 2010 and 2011 before he left to join Sony Sugar.

“We have been looking for a while to get a local assistant coach because it is very important even by the labor laws of the country. We had several applicants for the position but when we looked at everyone, Zico was the best man for the job,” Rachier told Capital Sport.

The tactician was sent on leave by Posta Rangers towards the end of last season after the club struggled to get results and was subsequently replaced by former Kenyan international Sammy Omollo at the start of the year.

He was later pushed to the role of ‘technical director’ but now seems to have preferred the move back to his boyhood club to replace Tom Ogweno who was relieved of his duties after a fall out with head coach Ferreira.

Rachier said he is confident Otieno will be of importance to the club especially in helping Ferreira to get the best out of the players, as Gor seeks to wrestle back the title from Tusker FC.

“Zico has been with us before and understands the set up of the club. He knows the Kenyan league very well and the players as well. He can relate to them better and we saw these as some of the very key components that separated him from the rest,” Rachier noted.

He added; “He has coached the national team and comes in with a lot of experience. Couple that with what Ze Maria has to offer and I am confident we have a very strong technical bench.”

The club has also hired former Kenyan international Willis Ochieng as their new goalkeeper trainer, taking over from Mathews Ottamax who is said to have headed to Nakumatt after he was axed from the club.

Ochieng already started working with the club’s keepers a fortnight ago.

Meanwhile, Kenya’s representatives in the CAF Confederations Cup Ulinzi Stars will look to play against Gor and AFC Leopards as part of their build up towards their first round match against Egypt’s Smouha on March 10 in Alexandria.

“The league has stopped and I think we need to get tough matches to prepare. If the league was on, then we would have had a perfect platform. We will ask Gor and AFC whether we can play them because we need such kind of opposition,” Ulinzi Stars vice chairman Major Joe Birgen said.

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