Talanta Hela teams land in Barcelona for Costa Daurada Cup
The Kenya Talanta Hela U-19 boys and girls team braved the chilly weather on Monday morning and afternoon to register their arrival in Spain with commanding 3-0 and 4-0 wins respectively.
Talanta Hela Boys were too good for Taragona’s CF Constantine as they humiliated them 3-0 in the opening fixture of Group A at the CD Riudoms Stadium.
The girls team showed no mercy for their counterparts CE Jupiter with a steller 4-0 performance.
Alex Kipruto made his mark late in the first half with a beautiful left foot curling inside the area to give the Stanley Okumbi-coached side a deserving lead after minutes of sheer dominance.
Captain Elisha Nalianya,a form three student at the Menengai High School in Nakuru netted the second goal with a superb header from a Hamisi Otieno right side corner.
Kenya enjoyed possession in the better part of the second half with a 2-0 advantage.
With the game nearing an end, Derick Oketch sealed the sweet victory for the Talanta Hela boys with a great low shot that went past the Constantine goalkeeper.
Coach Stanley Okumbi expressed his satisfaction with the show in the first game picking positives ahead of the second match today against Usurbil.
“I am impressed with how the team expressed itself. We were compact defensively and upfront we were good as well. We had planned well on how to react with or without the ball and it worked well for us against our opponents. Collectively I saw individual performances that the end result to a team show and I can say they did it best,” Okumbi told People Sport.
Okumbi’s sentiments were echoed by team skipper Elisha Nalianya who said that the win was vital for them in search for a knockout place.
Coach Jacklyn Juma was in great joy after her girls staged a good show in their Group B opener against a Spanish side CE Jupiter.
Elizabeth Mideva scored a brace while Marion Musanga and Hilda Natecho registered their names on the scoresheet.
“I am very happy for this win. It was very key for us to get the three points in the first match and for sure this victory will give us more confidence in the next game.” coach Jacklyn Juma.
Day two of the tournament will see the Kenyan girls play Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon in an early morning assignment.
“Sporting Lisbon is a good team; I understand they are playing in their domestic league and of course our players are psyched up and therefore 90 minutes will decide,” coach Juma added.
The 2024 spring edition of the Costa Daurada Cup has attracted over 50 teams from 20 nations and Kenya is the only country from Africa taking part in the tournament.
