OPINION: Can a Coach Serve Two Masters? The Relegation of Talanta and City Stars Tells a Story

The 2024/25 Kenyan Premier League season has come to a close, and unfortunately, FC Talanta and Nairobi City Stars are headed to the NSL. Relegation is part of football—but what’s interesting and saddening is that both clubs were led by coaches tied to national team duties.

Salim Babu, currently head coach of Kenya's U20 and U17 Rising Stars, had a turbulent season. He started out at Kenya Police FC, the eventual league champions, only to be sacked after five matches with the team languishing in 15th place

Ironically, this came just a few months after he guided them to a MozzartBet Cup win and second place in the league. Babu then moved to City Stars but struggled to balance his club and national team responsibilities, with the team eventually dropping to the second tier. He spent more time on national team duties, whether at AFCON or CECAFA than he did on the City Stars bench.

Then there’s Jacklyn Juma, the first woman to coach a men’s side in the Kenyan Premier League. That alone is history. But under her watch, Talanta also went down, a tough pill to swallow. The team showed flashes of quality throughout the season and boasted standout players like Emmanuel Osoro, one of the league’s top scorers. Still, they lacked consistency and a clear playing identity. Juma’s frequent absences due to national team responsibilities and personal reasons made it difficult to build momentum. Now, she holds another unwanted record: the first woman to coach a men’s KPL side and get relegated

This all brings us back to a recurring issue in Kenyan football at the moment: can a coach truly serve two masters?

Some might point to Beldine Odemba, who led Kenya Police Bullets to the Women’s Premier League title while also serving with the national team. But how much of that success was due to her coaching, and how much came down to the superior resources at her disposal

In the end, coaching requires full attention, week in, week out. Maybe if Babu and Juma had been focused solely on club duties, things could have turned out differently for City Stars and Talanta.