Omalla reveals how two potential life-changing transfer deals rank as most difficult career moments

Just days after winning his maiden Golden Boot in the 23/24 Football Kenya Federation Premier League, Gor Mahia striker Benson Omalla revealed two of the most difficult moments he has ever faced in his career.

In an exclusive interview with SportPesa News, Omalla, who scored 19 goals to bag the coveted award last season, narrated how his failed moves to Sweden and Algeria remain his most challenging times as a player who had hopes that the deals would have changed the course of his life and where he comes from.

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In March 2021, it was officially announced that Omalla, who had just cleared his high school at Kisumu Day, would join Swedish Division One side FC Linkoping City on a six-month loan deal from Gor Mahia.

But after just two months into the move, the striker cut short his stay at Linkoping and returned to Gor, citing frustrations that saw him being deployed in the right-back position among other challenges.

Reminiscing on the failed stint, the former Western Stima player narrated how he thought that move would open doors for his career and family but never materialized.

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“My most difficult moment was the period I moved to Sweden. I had just finished high school and I really thought the deal would change my life, my family and the community I come from but unfortunately, things did not go well and it had a big effect on me,” Omalla told SportPesa News.

“It really did put me down but as a player, my role was to get myself out of that funk and I did my best to come out of the situation,” the player said.

In February 2024, disaster did not strike once but twice for Omalla as another move, this time to Algeria top tier side JS Saoura, failed to materialize after the club was blamed for delaying to send back signed documents on time.

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According to details of the deal, Omalla was to be offered a tantalizing package that included a net salary of $8,000 (approximately Ksh 1,312,720) per month, a house, a personal car, match bonuses and medical insurance cover once the contract was signed, only for the deal to fall through.

“Another tough moment was the failed move to Algeria and my performance went down a little bit due to that.

I managed to get back to training and just went back to the goals I had set at the start which was to become the top scorer which I am glad I managed to achieve in the end,” he concluded.

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