Before the much-anticipated 2022 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League preliminary round, Iloilo Kaya Futbol Club will be reinforced by veteran striker Robert Lopez-Mendy who returned to his former team.
The Iloilo City-based football club announced the return of the Senegalese booter over the weekend to add scoring punch to a team that wanted to bring home the title.
“It’s nostalgic, it’s like coming home after a long, long time and remembering the good old days. I have never felt at home anywhere else but here. This is one of the best decisions I have made this year so far,” said Lopez-Mendy.
He added: “[I expect] more wins, that’s for sure. With the lineup that we have, it’s not impossible to win more trophies and to put the team where it has never been before — being at the top, both domestically and internationally.”
Lopez-Mendy last played for Kaya-Iloilo during their championship run in the 2018 Copa Paulino Alcantara. He then moved overseas and also had stints with Kaya-Iloilo rival Ceres-Negros FC.
According to Kaya-Iloilo president Paul Tolentino, he’s glad the Lopez-Mendy finally made it back home to Kaya.
“Mendy is a player we know very well and has enjoyed some of his best seasons with the club. We are very excited to have his positive energy, work ethic and goal scoring abilities back at Kaya,” he added. “We can’t wait to get started and I hope it doesn’t take too long to get all the new pieces integrated.”
The 2021 Copa Paulino Alcantara champions also announced their acquisition of Azkals Developmental Team midfielder Sandro Miguel Sison Reyes.
“It feels great to complete my move to Kaya. I trained with the team for several months last year and I loved the atmosphere. It truly felt like a family,” he added.IMT Sports
