Former AFC Leopards midfielder Collins Sichenje was handed his second consecutive start in the UEFA Europa Conference league as AIK settled for a 1-1 home draw against North Macedonian side Shkendija with his compatriot Erick ‘Marcelo’ Ouma also clocking 90 minutes. Four Kenyans find out UEFA Europa Conference League opponentsSichenje was deployed as a right-sided center-back in the back three after impressing on his competitive debut for AIK in the same competition a week ago as they overcame Ukrainian outfit Vorskla Poltava.Marcelo was pushed to the left wing-back role in the back three system after providing an assist in the extra time win over Vorskla which enabled them to book a place in the Third Round Qualifying of the competition. The change in system was off to the worst possible start as with the referee’s whistle still sounding around the Friends Arena, Ferhan Hasani opened the scoring for Shkendija to stun the fans in the stadium. ##NAJAVA_MECA_6541747##AIK were not to stay behind for long as former Manchester City forward John Guidetti restored parity for the Swedish giants with former Sunderland midfielder Sebastian Larsson whipping in the assist. Marcelo was handed a caution three minutes after the half-hour mark for a cynical foul as AIK and Shkendija went into the halftime break locked in a 1-1 draw. The second half was a muted affair with both teams lacking the cutting edge to go ahead despite having a number of chances as AIK dominated proceedings and Shkendija hitting on the counter. Sichenje striving to make parents proud after AIK debutSichenje followed his compatriot Marcelo into the referee’s book as caution was thrown out of the window with both teams receiving five yellow cards in the final eight minutes of the game. AIK have all to do in the second leg where they travel to North Macedonia as they hope to secure a place in the Playoffs of the competition and eventually a place in the Group Stages.
