The Slum Boys have been blowing hot and cold this season, and against a struggling Talanta, they had come from behind to snatch a point.
An own goal courtesy of defender Kelly Mukok had enabled Talanta to take the lead in the 58th minute but Stephen Okola replied for Mathare United in the 62nd minute to share the spoils.
Out of 18 matches played, the Slum Boys have managed five wins, six draws and suffered seven defeats. Their wins came against Bidco United 1-0, FC Talanta 2-0 in the first round, KCB 1-0, Posta Rangers 2-0 and Shabana FC which they won 1-0.
Their recent performances have left coach Kamau scratching his head as they sit three places above the relegation zone.
Since defeating Shabana on December 21st, Mathare have gone for three matches without a win. They drew 0-0 against Kariobangi Sharks and suffered a 3-0 defeat against Mara Sugar before the 1-1 draw against Talanta.
Mathare need better players to compete
According to Kamau, who doubles up as the assistant coach of the national team Harambee Stars under interim coach Francis Kimanzi, the quality of players in Mathare United setup have failed to live up to his expectations and to avoid the team being relegated, new faces must be added to their roaster.
“Let us talk of two points dropped (against Talanta) but it is good that the mid-season transfer window is now open because I think there are some players here, whose quality is way below the Premier League, actually I don’t know what to say about the players, I have nothing to say,” Kamau told Flashscore.
“We have to bring in some players, we have to bring in quality players because I don’t think what we have we can say it is really what we need. For this team, and for it to remain in the Premier League for next season, we will need to make drastic changes, new players must be considered.”
Kamau, who locally has also coached Posta Rangers, further continued: “For the current squad, I can say they have done something as per their quality, I can’t bring them down and I can’t fail to commend them for what they have done so far but I think we need to go back to the drawing board, and the drawing board is just to bring in some quality players and then we move on from there.”
A visibly agitated Kamau further explained why his players were not good enough, giving an example of missed chances during the game against Talanta.
“When you get an opportunity, it is your time to showcase what you have, like against Talanta, substitutions, to me it was wastage, it was wastage, and this is one of the games that I am really disappointed in.
"We wasted too many chances and to me, it's two points dropped and not one earned.”
However, Kamau refused to press the panic button on Mathare’s free fall on the table, saying he would steady the ship with new signings.
“I don’t think there is a concern for dropping to the relegation zone but I think we have to do some drastic changes as far as the playing unit is concerned,” explained Kamau.
Mathare United’s next five matches will see them take on Shabana on February 9th, Kenya Police FC on February 12th, Murang’a Seal on February 15th, Kariobangi Sharks on March 1st and Mara Sugar on March 9th.
Mahia urged to refund Singida Black Stars
Meanwhile, Gor Mahia have been urged to refund Singida Black Stars their transfer fee for the botched transfer of midfielder Rooney Onyango.
This comes after the Tanzanian club gave the record Kenyan champions a 14-day ultimatum to pay over Ksh5 million being the transfer fee they wired to K’Ogalo for Onyango before the deal fell through in January.
“Our Club wrote to your Club on 3.1.2025 requesting your club to kindly refund the said amount of USD 40,000 since the transfer did not materialise due to your fault,” reads a letter from Singida, sent to Gor Mahia on January 29.
“It is unfortunate that to date, we have not received any response to our letter nor have we received the refund. In the same context, your club is given 14 days within which to pay the outstanding balance of 40,000 USD.
“Failure to do so our club will refer the matter to FIFA for breach of our agreement.”
According to former Gor Mahia official Sally Bolo, the transfer saga was embarrassing the club’s fraternity and soiling the brand image of the club.
“This saga of the botched transfer deal of Rooney Onyango from Gor Mahia to Singida Big Stars of Tanzania is now embarrassing the club fraternity and soiling the brand image of the club,” said Bolo.
“How did Singida Big Stars obtain the club’s dollar account details through which they wired the claimed amount of $40,000? How did Singida Big Stars arrive at the amount they sent if there was no prior agreement with Gor Mahia over a player who still had a running contract?”
Bolo continued: “The international transfer procedures are well documented. If a club is interested in acquiring the services of a player under a running contract, they must officially engage the parent in writing, tabling their offer in terms of the transfer fees.
“If Singida Big Stars didn't do that, they should be charged for player tapping and reported to FIFA. If they got into an official engagement with Gor Mahia through any of the current office bearers, then that transaction was official.
"In the event that, for one reason or another, the player in question did not make the move, the same thing and the professional way is for Gor Mahia to refund the amount to Singida Big Stars. The consequences of the failure to refund the money would mean, the issue being escalated to the FIFA Football Tribunal to take action which can be disastrous to Gor Mahia.
“Such can include paying the amount with interest, banning the club from player registration, and surcharging the club for inducing a contract termination outside the window, and since the club has had a bad record at FIFA over issues to do with overdue payables, continued violations can result in the relegation of the club to the lower leagues.”
Bolo concluded: “The best thing is to refund Singida Big Stars their money, period.”
Gor Mahia is yet to respond to Singida over their demand notice.
