Kenyan International Joseph Okumu will have to wait longer to make his debut at his new club KAA Gent after missing a chance to do so as the team made a strong start to their Europa Conference League campaign with an emphatic 4-0 win against Valeranga at home.Goals from Gianni Bruno, Tarik Tissoudali, Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe, and Yonas Malede sealed the victory for the hosts despite a penalty miss in the second half by the first goalscorer Bruno.FT 4-0 | Een lekkere start van ons Europese seizoen! #gntval pic.twitter.com/iogRjnmZTZ— KAA Gent (@KAAGent) July 22, 2021 The Harambee Stars defender was in line to make his debut and become the second Kenyan international to play in the newly launched UEFA Conference League after being included in the team’s squad that was set to take on the Norwegian team in the first leg of the second qualifying round that took place at the Ghelamco Arena in Belgium.The former Chemelil Sugar defender has not made an appearance in the five matches that the club has played since he signed with them about a month ago, missing out on the four friendly matches his new side was using to prepare for the qualifiers and that first leg fixture against Valeranga.Onze selectie voor de eerste van het seizoen 👀 #gntval pic.twitter.com/tLVjDl6qsr— KAA Gent (@KAAGent) July 21, 2021 The second leg of the encounter will take place a week later on June 29 in Norway and should be a comfortable one for Gent considering the first leg result.Okumu joined KAA Gent on a multi-million deal from the Swedish side IF Elfsborg after a successful spell with the team, helping them to a second-place finish last season.Gent are scheduled to kick-start their league campaign on Sunday against Sint-Truidense VV away and will be another chance for Okumu to have some minutes under his belt before the return leg against Valeranga four days later.Welcome Joseph Okumu (@okumu_stanley)! 🇰🇪 Keniaan🙋🏾♂️ 24 jaar⚽ Verdediger#kaagent #transferhttps://t.co/OqGVOJvQ6a— KAA Gent (@KAAGent) June 21, 2021
