Essa led from the front in the all-important match and scored the opening goal in the 14th minute of the match. PHOTO: K-ELECTRIC
KARACHI: K-Electric became the first Karachi-based side to win the Pakistan Premier Football League (PPFL) title as they took an unassailable 11-point lead at the top with two more matches to go by defeating second-placed Army at the Korangi Baloch Stadium on Friday.
For captain Muhammad Essa Khan, the victory is a blessing and a dream come true. Essa and his team have been challenging the title for the last three years, only to finish agonisingly close as they ended up as runners-up to KRL on both occasions. The skipper believes that winning the title is a revival of football in the country’s largest city.
“This victory has so much more to it,” Essa told The Express Tribune. “It’s huge; it’s the first time a team from Karachi will lift the trophy. It’s a win for the supporters of our team, the people who come to watch our matches from Lyari, the local students, and the pathans from the Lighthouse area. It’s a victory for all of Karachi, never in 11 years has any team from this great city won the title. This goes out to the people of this city. Football isn’t dead in Karachi.”
Essa led from the front in the all-important match and scored the opening goal in the 14th minute of the match, while Nigerian striker Sunday Obayuni sealed the all-important win four minutes later.
“We lost some matches in the beginning,” said Essa. “But I told my team that despite our slow start we have to win the title this time around. It would’ve been a shame if we didn’t, especially now that we have two foreign players with us. On a personal level, it was really special to score in a match that was almost like a final to us.”
So far, Essa has scored five goals, while fellow striker Muhammad Rasool is the league’s highest scorer with 22 goals. Obayuni has also impressed with 11 goals in his second season at the club.
Essa was quick to praise his fellow players, saying that Obayuni and Wilson have played a crucial role in the team’s success, while Rasool has played the best season of his career.
“It was an entertaining match,” said match-commissioner Iqbal Junior. “K-Electric were on fire in the beginning, and with quick goals, they dominated the field. Army did try to score, but it wasn’t their day.”
K-Electric have 47 points on the table, while Army — 11 points adrift —can only finish second. PAF are level on points with Army on 36 points as well.
Aiming for the AFC Cup
Despite the win, K-Electric are not resting on their laurels. Essa added that his side is no focusing on representing Pakistan in the AFC Cup qualifiers this year.
“Our next target is to make a mark at the AFC Cup qualifiers as the top club from Pakistan,” said Essa. “I must thank Allah and the management for supporting us. You see, Karachi has a lot of talent, it just shows that with support from the management, this talent can deliver results too.”
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