Singida Fountain Gate has disclosed the reasons for releasing Kenyan players Elvis Rupia, Duke Abuya, and Joash Onyango shortly after signing them to high-value contracts. The team has confirmed that this decision was made to generate funds to settle their debts.
Recently, the club has been actively acquiring prominent players from around the region through expensive deals. However, this strategy has led to financial strain. In a surprising turn of events, Singida released the three Kenyan players, who then joined league competitor Ihefu FC during the midseason transfer window, less than half a year after their arrival at Singida.
Club spokesperson Hussein Masinza stated that while they wished to retain these players, their hands were tied due to substantial debts owed to former players. These debts resulted in a transfer ban from FIFA.
Masinza told Pulse Sports, “It was purely a business move. We have some high-value players in our team who we believed could assist us in resolving our financial issues, so we decided to release them.”
He explained the club’s financial predicaments, including the transfer ban preventing player registrations, and their focus on sustainability led to this difficult but necessary decision.
Additionally, Masinza acknowledged the need to streamline the club’s oversized roster. Following their extensive spending, the club had around 40 players. They opted to sell a few key players to balance their finances rather than releasing a larger number of less valuable team members.
“Elvis Rupia, Duke Abuya, and Joash Onyango are exceptional players and were part of our plans, but we realized they could help us address our financial challenges,” he said.
The decision to let them go was challenging, and it required convincing the coach. Despite interest from other clubs like Simba, Ihefu’s substantial offer was accepted.
Onyango was the first to join Singida on a loan from Simba SC with an option to buy last July, followed by Abuya who left Kenya Police. Rupia, also from Kenya Police, joined them in September. The club had ambitious plans, even aiming to win the league.
Yet, less than five months after their debut, they became expendable. Despite not being regular starters for Onyango, Abuya and Rupia were fan favorites, often winning man of the match awards. However, their popularity was not enough to secure their spots.
Rupia, who was the top scorer in the FKF Premier League last season with 27 goals, recently showcased his talent at the Mapinduzi Cup, where he was the top scorer with five goals.
