Tusker seek third of the season against high flying AFC

• Both Tusker and AFC Leopards have won their opening games of the season
• Tusker are the defending champions
• Their last meeting ended in a 2-1 win for the brewers

Defending champions Tusker FC and AFC Leopards meet crucial clash on Sunday evening at the Moi Sports centre Kasarani, one of the highlight fixtures of this weekend’s FKF Premier League.

Tusker have beaten Kakamega Homeboyz and Nairobi City Stars while AFC Leopards have won against Ulinzi Stars, and were uninvolved last weekend.

The brewers are looking for a third win of the season and to cement their place at the apex of the standings, in what has been a better start to the season than last term.

Head coach Robert Matano has attributed this time a more united squad and improved synergy in the playing unit and technical bench.

“Last season we had many new players and it took us time to gel as a team. This time, we have worked together for almost a whole year and we understand each other better. We have also tried to keep the squad intact and that is why we are playing like we are,” the coach said.

City Stars win buoy them

Tusker FC players celebrate one of their goals.

The massive 4-1 win against City Stars last weekend has been a huge morale booster for the team and he believes the spirit they showed will carry them though the day.

“As Tusker, one of the things we do is that we fight till the end. We never give up. We conceded early against City Stars but we fought on to win by a big margin. That says what we stand for as a team,” noted Matano.

Against Leopards, they face a tricky assignment, Patrick Aussems’ young side having impressed in the single game they have played this season, a 2-0 victory against Ulinzi.

Matano knows it will not be an easy match but says the game will be won more on the mental side than on the tactical end.

“We are okay tactically and physically. For AFC, it is a game more on the mental side. We have to know on how to deal with pressure from the fans and possibly even the referees. We need to be strong mentally,” said the coach.

Tusker won the last meeting

Tusker’s Ibrahim Joshua is tackled by AFC’s Peter Thiong’o

The last meeting between the two was at the Kasarani Stadium, the venue of Sunday’s game and it ended 2-1 in favour of Tusker, with Deogratious Ojok scoring the winning goal.

Overall on head to head, Tusker has won 17 of their last 29 matches, losing six while the other six ended in draws. Over the last five, Leopards has won three, and Tusker two.

Meanwhile in the other fixtures this weekend, City Stars will look to recover from the 4-1 drubbing by Tusker when they take on FC Talanta at Ruaraka while in Mombasa, fifth placed Bandari take on KCB.

Bandari has four points off a win and a draw, while KCB have a balanced return of a win and a loss in their opening two games of the new campaign.