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Tom Juma, the former AFC Leopards head coach, has opened up about his future plans after being sacked by the FKF Premier League giants in October.
Juma, who was in charge of Leopards for only six games, said he is ready to bounce back and take up any coaching opportunity that comes his way, as long as the conditions are favorable.
He said he is not targeting any specific team or league, but he is looking for a club that shares his vision and ambition.
"Whatever opportunity that will come up whether NSL or Premier League is okay with me," Juma told Opera News. "I am not targeting any specific team as long as it is a good opportunity to give back. It will depend on what is the objective. Almost a month ago, I received an offer from an NSL team, I did the interview everything went well but the distance was not ideal for me. They are a bit far from Nairobi where my family is settled and the logistics were not right."
Juma, who was a former Kenya international and AFC Leopards legend, said he learned a lot from his short stint at Ingwe, where he faced a lot of challenges and pressure.
He said he was not given enough authority and autonomy to make decisions, especially in the recruitment of players.
He blamed the club's management for interfering with his work and undermining his authority.
"You must be on the same page in terms of recruitment, budget, ambition, long-term and short-term targets before you decide. You must be on the same line in terms of vision," he said. "At AFC Leopards, I was not involved in the recruitment of players. I was just given the players and told to work with them. That was not fair to me and the players. I had no say in who to sign or who to release. The management was calling the shots and sometimes they would go behind my back and talk to the players directly. That created a lot of confusion and mistrust."
Juma said he was disappointed by the way he was sacked by AFC Leopards, saying he was not given enough time and support to prove himself.
He said he was confident that he could have turned things around if he was given more time and resources.
He also hit out at AFC Leopards and their arch-rivals Gor Mahia for their tendency to hire foreign coaches over local ones, saying that they are not giving enough opportunities and respect to the local tacticians.
He said that the foreign coaches are not necessarily better than the local ones, and that they are often overrated and overpaid.
He urged the two clubs to invest more in the local coaches and give them a chance to showcase their abilities and potential.
"I think AFC Leopards and Gor Mahia are not fair to the local coaches. They are always looking for foreign coaches who are not even better than us. They are just hyped and paid a lot of money, but they don't deliver. They don't understand the local game and the culture. They don't have the passion and the loyalty that we have. They are just here for the money and the fame. They don't care about the clubs or the players. They are just using them as stepping stones to go to other places. I think the local coaches deserve more respect and recognition. We have the talent and the experience to coach these big clubs. We just need the support and the trust from the management and the fans."
Juma, who had previously coached Administration Police and Muhoroni Youth, said he is not bitter or angry about his AFC Leopards exit, but he is motivated and determined to prove his critics wrong.
He said he is still passionate about coaching and he is always ready to learn and improve.
He said he is hopeful that he will get another chance to coach at the top level and achieve his goals and dreams.
"I am not giving up on coaching. I love this job and I enjoy it. I am always learning and improving. I am not perfect, but I am not a failure either. I have made some mistakes, but I have also done some good things. I have a lot to offer to any team that will hire me. I am not looking for revenge or anything like that. I just want to prove myself and show what I can do. I have a lot of goals and dreams that I want to achieve as a coach. I believe I will get another chance to coach at the top level and I will make the best of it."
