FC Talanta's Emmanuel Osoro (right) celebrates his goal with teammate Derrick Ikholi against Tusker during Football Kenya Federation Premier League Match on May 14, 2025 at Dandora Stadium.
If goals were all a team needed to survive relegation, then FC Talanta striker Emmanuel Osoro would have been a hero.
The 19-year-old Harambee Stars forward netted 16 goals in the recently concluded 2024/25 Football Kenya Federation Premier League (FKF-PL), one less than Golden Boot winner, Moses Shumah of Kakamega Homeboyz.
Kenya's Emmanuel Osoro (left) celebrates his goal with Austine Odhiambo (right) during their international friendly match against Chad at Marrakech Stadium in Morocco on June 10, 2025.
Osoro spiced up his performance with five assists.
But sadly, for him, that remarkable individual performance was not enough to save the club from relegation -- a bittersweet end to an outstanding season for the young striker.
“I’m hurt to be among the top scorers yet my team has been relegated,” Osoro told Nation Sport.
“I gave my best, struggled, and sacrificed, but the season has not ended the way we (Talanta) had expected.”
What stings most for the Bukembe Boys High School alumnus is the fact that Talanta went down on goal difference.
Remarkably, the four bottom placed teams in the 18-team FKF-PL table -- Bidco United, Posta Rangers, Talanta, and Nairobi City Stars, finished level on 35 points. Goal difference condemned Talanta and Nairobi City Stars to be demoted as the 17th and 18th placed teams respectively.
The Kenya Academy of Sports-sponsored Talanta scored 33 goals, with Osoro contributing almost half of them and defender Bernard Odhiambo four goals.
“It would have helped a lot if some of my fellow strikers and midfielders scored three or four goals. But you find that the person following me is a defender with four goals. With that, it became difficult to survive relegation,” said the former Nzoia Sugar man.
From left: Emmanuel Osoro of Talanta, Tusker striker Ryan Ogam and Moses Shumah of Kakamega Homeboyz.
But how did he manage to maintain his scoring form when Talanta, coached by Jackline Juma, struggled for the better part of the season?
“The main factor in my performance was working hard,” said Osoro.
“When you train hard with the team and also hold individual sessions, things will just work out for you. You must put in a strong performance in matches, and it motivates you to even train harder,” said the forward who began playing football in the dusty fields of Malaba in Busia early this century.
After honing his football skills at Malaba Giants Academy, the Kenya international said he took the sport seriously while studying at Bukembe Boys High School in Bungoma County.
It wasn’t long before the local side, Nzoia Sugar, came calling.
After joining Talanta at the start of the just concluded season, he transitioned from winger to out-and-out striker – a change he said was not easy.
“The coach told me that it will be easy if I adjust my mind. It was after I scored in five consecutive matches that I fully accepted the new role,” he said.
To maintain his energy level he prefers to eat ugali with omena and sukuma wiki or ugali with beef.
On Saturday, Osoro credited his impressive performance to his teammates and coaches Juma and Jackson Gatheru.
“They always trusted me to score. It gave me pressure, so I always had to train hard to meet their expectations. Also in training, we had competition amongst ourselves.
“I always strived to prove our goalkeepers wrong that I could score against them. That competition was so helpful in preparing me for competitive matches,” said the striker.
Osoro says he has received offers and his dream is to play for a big club in Europe.
