City Stars explain what Japanese striker ‘Mitoma’ will add to their potent attack

© Nairobi City Stars.

FOOTBALL City Stars explain what Japanese striker ‘Mitoma’ will add to their potent attack

Joel Omotto 09:38 - 11.01.2024

Nairobi City Stars are salivating at the prospect of adding their long-waited Japanese attacker Yuto ‘Mitoma’ Kusaba to their front line which has scored the most goals in the FKFPL so far.

Nairobi City Stars cannot wait to have Japanese striker Yuto Kusaba who is close to finalising his transfer to the club after his debut for Simba wa Nairobi was delayed by four months.

Kusaba, who has been compared to Brighton winger Kaoru Mitoma, signed for City Stars from Embu-based fourth-tier side FC Zenshin last August but it emerged that international guidelines of the FIFA Transfer Matching System (TMS) had not been met prior to his move, locking him out of action until the January transfer window.

Now, City Stars are rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of adding him onto their potent frontline which has been a revelation this season as they are the top scorers in the FKF Premier League so far.

“Yuto came back and has been training with us. We have been working on his clearance since the international transfer window opened on January 1,” said City Stars CEO Patrick Korir.

“He will bring competition to the forward line. Yes, everyone is scoring but he brings in serious competition.

“Like in our game against FC Talanta, we had four wasted chances and that means with Yuto around, the waster will be put on their toes.”

City Stars have scored 25 goals in 17 games, the most in the division, with Samuel Kapen on five and Roninson Asenwa as well as Vincent Owino on four each.

Kapen and Asenwa have also provided four assists apiece, showing just how influential they have been, and seem to be coping well with the absence of last season’s top scorer Kelvin Etemesi, who had scored three by the time he fell ill.

Adding Kusaba to the mix therefore presents an exciting prospect for Simba wa Nairobi who are now second on the log after a record run of six straight wins.

The left-footed attacker played for St Andrews University and Basara Hyogo in Japan before coming to Kenya as a volunteer with an Embu-based non-governmental organisation where he got the opportunity to play for FC Zenshin.

He signed a short-term deal with Zenshin where he was for four months, scoring eight goals in 11 matches, after which he was invited for trials by City Stars who decided to hand him a deal after impressing them.

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