Onen thrilled with return to level ‘where he belongs’
Peter Onen admitted that he is enchanted to return to the StarTimes Uganda Premier League with Gadaffi FC, and says his first job is to keep the club in the top division.
Onen, will be taking charge of a top flight club since he was sacked by BUL Bidco FC – the cross-town rivals to his new club – in January 2020.
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But he insists his appetite to coach football at the top level remains unquenched, after replacing Mubarak Wamboya at the Gadaffi Arena.
“I am very happy with the way I have been welcomed into the club,” Onen told media at his first press conference with the club.
“My expectation has always been coming back into the top division where the competition is at its tightest, and I know I can manage the demands.”
“My target is to make sure that the club remains consistent in the top flight,” he added.
Wamboya was demoted from the head coach role at the club despite a reasonable start to the season for Gadaffi.
The Soldier Boys are 10th with five points from their first five games – winning once and drawing two – having earned their first ever promotion from the FUFA Big League last season.
Wamboya will now work as the second assistant to Onen and will double as the fitness and conditioning coach in the recent shake up of the coaching structure at Gadaffi.
Hassan Zungu – the man who guided Gadaffi to promotion will continue as the first assistant coach with Geofrey Ngalire taking on the role of first team trainer.
I am here to see that I can help this team to stay in the top flight and at this level of competition for the years to come.
It will be a collective effort for us to achieve that, but that is my target that I have to everyone and see that we work together to achieve it.
Onen last worked in the Uganda Premier League in January 2020, after he incredibly led BUL to the top of the table, before a mid-season crumble with three consecutive defeats saw him get the boot at BUL.
The 43-year-old faces a tough start, with Gadaffi hosting fellow new comers Arua Hill to Jinja in his first game in charge on November 19, before they visit his former side BUL.
