After yet another blank season this year, SC Kiyovu boss Juvenal Mvukiyehe has promised supporters that the team will come back biting next season despite releasing the majority of the club's senior players during the current transfer window.
The Mumena-based side was on the verge of claiming the title this season but suffered some infamous slips that were too hard to digest, twice losing it to rivals APR FC.
They threw the 2022/23 league title away the day they fell to a shock 1-0 loss to Sunrise at Nyagatare Stadium. APR capitalized Kiyovu's slip and won their remaining games to win the title on goal difference.
Their title loss was followed by massive squad overhaul which saw seven senior players released as a result.
Kiyovu parted company with Ismail Nshimirimana, arguably Kiyovu's best player in the just-concluded season, Burundian counterpart Abedi Bigirimana, Riyaad Nordien, Erisa Keith Ssekisambu, Bienvenue Mugenzi, Ally Serumogo, and Thierry Ndayishimiye in a major squad overhauling which has shocked pundits of the local game and club supporters at large.
But the club is also working on splashing the cash to bring in new faces as part of building a strong foundation for the coming season and upcoming years.
"We will need several changes in the first team because we are in the process of building a strong team that will do better next season and for some time to come," Mvukiyehe said, commenting on the club's anticipated transfer business.
Mvukiyehe admits that the whole Green Baggies community, from the top management to the fans, has tasted the pain of losing the titles in a decisive stage which could take them time to overcome until they have the last laugh on the title, sooner or later.
"There has been a lot of pain in the past two years but we have to forget about the past and prepare for the next season because, in football, you can lose the league but we haven't lost our team. We have to stick together and look for where we failed to do better and correct it next year," he said.
While many might think that releasing the top players might make Kiyovu a team that is too average to challenge for titles as opposed to the past two seasons, Mvukiyehe warned his rivals to expect a serious title challenge next season as his management looks to transform the club into a football powerhouse in Rwanda.
"We have not been consistent enough during the last two seasons because of many reasons but we promise to come back strong next season and we are cooking something good for our supporters. We have learned the lesson and we will be looking to maximize our chances next season," he said.
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Never say never!
Kiyovu was the most successful football club in the country before the horrendous events of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, having won six league titles and four in the previous ten years.
The Green Baggies have, however, not won a major trophy in the post-Genocide era. The Rwanda Premier League titles for the 2021/22 and 2022/23 season were theirs to lose before they faltered on both occasions at the last hurdle allowing APR to snatch the trophy from them.
Mvukiyehe said that the past two seasons showed everyone, including rivals, that Kiyovu can rise again and win titles again. It is just a matter of time and Kiyovu will get it right on the transfer market.
"I think we had a good run and we have been consistent in the past two years but failed the finishing line so we need to start afresh. Football is about good foundation and resistance and we believe that one day we shall do better than we did," he noted.
