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Singida Fountain Gate have explained why they had to offload Kenyan players Elvis Rupia, Duke Abuya and Joash Onyango, just months after signing them on big-money deals
Singida Fountain Gate have confirmed that they offloaded Kenyan players Elvis Rupia, Duke Abuya and Joash Onyango so as to raise enough money to pay their debts.
The club has been on a recent spending spree, singing top names around the region for big-money deals but it appears the huge outlay has caught up with them.
In a surprise move, Singida ditched the Kenyan trio, who all signed for league rivals Ihefu FC in the midseason transfer window, less than six months after joining the club.
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13:00 - 18.01.2024
FOOTBALL Kenyan trio Elvis Rupia, Duke Abuya and Joash Onyango dumped by Singida Fountain Gate
Tanzanian side Singida Fountain Gate FC have offloaded Kenyan players Elvis Rupia, Duke Abuya and Joash Onyango, less than five months after signing them
Club spokesman Hussein Masinza says while they wanted to keep them, they were left with no option given they currently owe a lot of money to former players who took them to FIFA, leading to a transfer ban.
“It was all purely business,” Masinza told Pulse Sports. “We have some valuable players in the squad who we thought can help us sort our financial problems and we decided to offload them.”
“We have many debts and as it is, we are currently under a transfer ban and cannot register any players. We want our club to be sustainable and that is why we took this decision.
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11:00 - 15.01.2024
KANDANDA Singida FG yajivunia Rupia kuwa Mfungaji Bora Mapinduzi Cup
Ametwaa tuzo hiyo baada ya kufunga mabao matano katika michuano hiyo
“It was not an easy decision but it the best for our club to avoid further punishment from FIFA. As it is, we have five former players who we owe money and they have taken us to FIFA.”
Masinza also admitted the club had a bloated squad which needed trimming.
“We also have a big squad after our recent big spending. We have about 40 players and we thought instead of offloading so many, we sell just a few valuable ones who will help us balance the books,” he added.
“Elvis Rupia, Duke Abuya and Joash Onyango are top players, they were in our plans but we thought they can help us solve our financial challenges.
“It was not easy to let them go. We had to really convince the coach to accept. There was great demand for them, even Simba wanted some of them, but Ihefu came with a big offer and we took the opportunity.”
Onyango was the first to join Singida when he signed on loan, with an option to buy, from Simba SC last July before Abuya followed after ditching Kenya Police.
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16:00 - 02.01.2024
FOOTBALL Elvis Rupia maintains hot scoring streak as Duke Abuya & Joash Onyango also star for Singida
Kenyan striker Elvis Rupia made it three goals in two games as he was on target for Singida Fountain Gate in their Mapinduzi Cup win over Rwanda’s APR
Rupia would follow them to Singida, also from Kenya Police, in September as the club showed a great ambition, even promising to win the league.
However, just under five months since they made their debut for the club, they have now become surplus to requirements.
While Onyango had not been a regular starter, Abuya and Rupia were a big hit with the fans, winning man of the match awards on multiple occasions, but it seems that was still not enough.
Rupia, top scorer in the FKF Premier League with a record 27 goals last season, recently displayed his quality at the Mapinduzi Cup where he was the top scorer with five goals.
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