Ulinzi Stars midfielder raring to go after making first start

Ulinzi Stars midfielder Ibrahim Shambi is raring to go after making his maiden start for the soldiers this season in the 3-1 triumph against Bandari at Mbaraki Grounds on Tuesday.

The 24-year old topped up his stellar performance with an assist, setting up John Kago to score Ulinzi's first goal just eight minutes into the game.

Shambi said that judging by his perfmance in the first game, he only expects to get better and is aiming at helping the team more in the coming games.

"I thank God because this has been a good start. With such a performance in my first start of the season, I expect the next game to be better than this. I will put in more effort in training so that in the next game I help the team more," he said.

The midfielder was deployed as a forward against Bandari and he relishes the role he played, saying that it was easy for him play there just by following the instructions of his coach Benjamin Nyangweso.

"It's all about following the instructions of the coach and working as he tells me to do. In the end, it is all about the team," he added.

Shambi said that he is eyeing at least a goal and an assist in the next assignment, adding that he is more than capable of bagging more than one goal in a game and he will put on the much needed effort to achieve that.

"I've started with an assist. In my next game, I am targeting at least a goal and an assist because I believe I have what it takes to score even two in a game. It will all depend on the effort that I put in and it is my responsibility to work hard," he said.

The former SS Asad player said that getting the chance to play in Mombasa was motivation enough as he wanted to prove at his backyard that he has all it takes to compete at that level.

Shambi captained Ulinzi Warriors to their KPL U20 trophy in 2016 before joining Ulinzi Stars main team after a stellar performance with the Warriors.