I’m a Christian and I believe in miracles of God. I’m superstitious depending on my beliefs, and I’ve never seen the face of Jesus face to face but I believe he died but rose again. Losing the league title would be bad for AS Kigali who managed to show they are very good challengers against the likes of APR and Rayon Sports; the most successful clubs in the league. AS Kigali has so far won nine games, drawn three and lost three. So with just the ending of the first round of the season, is it time for AS Kigali to celebrate by cracking a bottle of champagne? Not yet, at least for now. They’ve had a fantastic campaign in the first round which ended with 30 points, two ahead of the second placed APR and Gasogi United, and thanks, possibly, to the most thrilling and entertaining players – Jacques Tuyisenge, Hussein 'Tchabalala' Shaban, Rashid Kalisa and captain Haruna Niyomzima as we’ve witnessed. AS Kigali FC can feel pretty secure if APR fails to win at least more league games than the citizens. Shaban and Tuyisenge proved that, whatever they might have lost in their legs, they haven’t lost that killer edge in front of the goal. If only one could only use the time machine and roll them back in past matches! They played brilliantly despite losing to Sunrise. But, to be honest, that doesn’t really matter anymore. If they played beautiful, thrilling football every match, and lost, it would count for nothing. Their unstoppable display seems to have them on course for a trophy this season. They play well, grind out results and have proved that in the last two years, meaning a little bit of belief goes a long way in the Rwanda Premier League title race this season. It’s a busy campaign from January 20 when the league resumes for Andre Casa Mbungo's team with many games in the league besides the Peace Cup and AS Kigali fans started to dream of a double. Naturally, all AS Kigali fans would like to win all upcoming matches. This would mean taking one step closer to lifting the league trophy for the very first time. Despite their league position, AS Kigali FC have plenty of quality players in their squad coupled with the fact that they are now handled by an experienced coach who, in two years, elevated the team to the status of title contenders. With Rashid Kalisa back in form, with an average pass completion rate of 90 per cent in his last games and having made more interceptions than any other player, AS Kigali will be hard to beat. This is a good young team. They just need to stay fit. Every one of the players is playing with a lot of confidence. Every one of the players is playing to the best of their ability. For Tuyisenge, Shaban and skipper Haruna Niyonzima, hopefully this would make their cup dream a reality as they will be scrapping for every point. They need to play in the same manner they have done throughout the season, with focus on a solid defence and rising creativity in front of goal would mean they might lift the league trophy, featuring in the Champions league next season and cracking the champagne. They've started really well but there is a long way to go. There are good signs but the tough part of the season is yet to come. This is definitely not the time to get carried away if you are an AS Kigali fan. Despite years of no league trophies in the team’s cabinet AS Kigali are serious title contenders. There is definitely a spirit building and the fans see a team and manager going places. This team needs not just better technical and tactical requirements but more importantly a strong mentality if they are to pull off what would be the biggest shock in the history of Rwandan football. Casa Mbungo has done some good work in just two years. Physically, the team can play 120 minutes and be aggressive. AS Kigali has not won the league title since it was founded in 1999 but has won five cup competitions. AS Kigali won the Peace Cup in 2001 as Les Citadins FC before changing its name in 2005, and went on to win the tourney again in 2013 and 2019. After the first round of the league, all teams will take a two-week break. The league will resume on January, 20.
