By Austin Oduor Otieno,
The Kenyan Premier League has grown tremendously to become among the top most watched league in Sub Saharan Africa after the ABSA South African Premier Soccer league. The growth has seen the Kenyan top tier with one of the best league administrators attract sponsors and players.CEO Jack Oguda who has been in the helm from inception attributes this to transparency and accountability.
Supersport holds the official TV right while East African Breweries with its Tusker Brand are the official sponsors.
It is this good organization that most African players are in search of greener pastures in Kenya. The league has attracted good players who recently featured for their National teams in the first matches of the 2017 AFCON qualifiers. Burundian Abdul Razak Fiston who just joined Mamelodi Sundowns and scored Burundi’s consolation in their 3-1 loss to Senegal is a product of KPL.Also Gor Mahia quartet of Abouba Sibomana(Rwanda),Dirkir Glay(Liberia),Khalid Aucho and Godfrey Walusimbi both of Uganda were outstanding for their respective Countries.
It is with this attraction that Zambian Soccer player Kasonde Mutale Gustavo has endured a long road trip from the capital Lusaka to Kapiri Mposhi via Tanzania to the Kenyan Capital Nairobi just to try his luck with one of the Kenya Premier League Clubs.
The 22 year old player is confident of landing in one of the KPL clubs and he says his addition to the KPL will attract other Zambian Players. He becomes the second player to do so after Nigerian Felix Nwosu on his own account travelled to Kenya to try his luck at KPL Champions Gor Mahia.This is after falling in love with the Club after watching it on TV.
Mutale last featured for relegated Club Indeni FC in the Zambian top tier ZSL.He plays in the defense and prefers central part.
He began his football career at 11 yrs turning for Ajax FC Academic of Lusaka in 2003 to 2005.The same year in 2005 he joined Makeni Youth Academic and it is here where he was part of the team that won a tournament in neighboring Zimbabwe.
In 2009, Mutale moved to Cosmos Academic FC in Lusaka where he featured until 2013 where he joined Zambian Super league side Indeni playing for them for one season before the team was relegated to the second tier last season
Joseph Siwulanji Tungati who hails from Kapiri Mposhi in Northern Zambia also has shown interest of making his way to Kenya to follow his friend Mutale, speaking to Soka25ast,the 19 year old who featured for Tazara Express,Fringilla FC and Kapiri United said he is soon heading to the East African Largest Economy as soon as his done with his Final A level exams.
It is interesting to note how things will unfold.
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