Sofapaka head coach David Ouma described Simon Masaka as ‘an outstanding goalkeeper’ at the back of his inclusion in Harambee Stars provisional squad for the, upcoming Four Nations tournament scheduled for Mauritius from June 11th to June 18th, 2023.Masaka was among the new faces that were handed their maiden call-ups to the national team by head coach Engin Firat together with; Kenya Police midfielder Charles Ouma, Moses Shummah of Kakamega Homeboyz and Kariobangi Sharks defender Kevin Luke Otiala.Maiden call up for Simon Masaka of Sofapaka too— Murimi Kipchirnjir (@muriminjirujnr) May 29, 2023 “He is a fantastic goalkeeper,” Ouma said of Masaka after Sofapaka’s game against Bandari on Saturday. “A very good addition he is to the national team. I believe he is going to bring in a lot of competition to the other goalkeepers that have been called up.”The former Soy United made a welcome return to the Sofapaka bench on Saturday after having, missed a couple of games resulting from a knock he suffered in the Mozzart Bet Cup quarter final tie against Ulinzi Stars on 29 April.“He is coming up well and its very encouraging to see him back in action,” Ouma said of his health status. “At the end of the day, he is one of the players that I really push to be more competitive not only in our team but to test himself against the other goalkeepers in the league. You can imagine what it takes to, on a weekend, stand out from 17 other goalkeepers. It’s a lot but possible with our group.”##NAJAVA_MECA_7299373##Masaka, has had an impressive third season at the club that has seen him bag multiple man of the match awards in games against Nairobi City Stars and Gor Mahia this term, to go along with a run of four consecutive clean sheets in February.“The door is always open to those who expose themselves in a positive way,” Ouma added, mentioning that his selection should act as a motivation boost for the rest of the squad.“Collectively, this adds desire,” the former Harambee Starlets head coach said. “You can do so much to motivate the group but it should come from individuals. We do everything as a coaching staff; they have to have the hunger and get involved.”After the team’s 2-0 defeat to Bandari at the Nyayo Stadium thanks to two second half strikes from Hassan Abdallah and James Kinyanjui, another of Sofapaka’s youngster in Ben Stanley Omondi, was awarded as the team’s player of the month (May) by club President Elly Kalekwa and Ouma was at hand to speak on what he could achieve in future.And our player of the month @_Benstanleey was awarded ….. By our own coach @CoachDavidOuma #sofapakafamilia @OyandoRonny #sofapakaawards #potm #benstanley pic.twitter.com/MtHnyEiRJo— Sofapaka FC (@FC_Sofapaka) June 3, 2023 “11 goals and two assists this season is simply outstanding,” Ouma stated. “He is another man I keep motivating and grooming. He is international standard, not to be shipped to local sides.”With Saturday’s loss, Sofapaka dropped their 12th game this season and are 12th on the FKF Premier League log with 38 points.Batoto Ba Mungu cap off their season with two games against AFC Leopards and Nzoia Sugar.
