Cranes defender Muleme aims to pull up his socks

The chance to play out of the country in more lucrative leagues especially in Europe and Asia is a dream for many a footballer plying their trade domestically.
Yet when such an opportunity arose, Isaac Muleme was unable make the most of it.
“I should have left the local league a lot earlier,” Muleme immediately opens up at the slightest prompting in an online chat with the now Slovakia-based player.
It is over a decade since Muleme came to the fore at record 16-time league cham SC Villa in 2009 to be exact, as part of an exciting crop of players from the club’s junior side Jogoo Young.
He quickly established himself in the team, easily stepping into what many thought were big shoes left by the departed Godfrey Walusimbi, one of several outstanding left backs the club has produced over the years.

Scouts attention
It did not take long for him to impress and two years after his debut, Villa were invited for the annual BTV Cup in Vietnam where according to Muleme about five players attracted attention from clubs in the Far East.
To their dismay, however, the club turned down all offers asking for what Muleme describes as high transfer fees.
“If Villa had accepted those offers then our careers would be far different from how they have now turned out. Sometimes I think our clubs are too greedy,” Muleme further states.

A disillusioned Muleme then returned home spending a further two years at Villa Park before moving to Sports Club Victoria University (SCVU) in 2013.
After a relatively successful stint in which he won the Nile Basin Cup with the club, Muleme returned to his boyhood club Villa midway through the 2014/2015-league campaign.

Always on the move
He was on the move again in 2016 signing for rivals KCCA where he won a league and cup double in his 18 months at the club.
The start of 2018 saw him sever ties with KCCA before landing his first deal abroad with Egyptian club Al Assouity Sports Club.
The move was quickly followed by another to Haras El Hodoud also in Egypt before Muleme finally landed in central Europe at Czech second division side Viktoria Žižkov.

It is there that Muleme found striking differences especially in terms of intensity when compared to the domestic league. “You need quick thinking, speed and power to survive here. They move the ball very fast from one end to the other and make our domestic league appear as if we are playing in slow motion,” Muleme explains.
Muleme admits it has hardly been an easy ride particularly after finding playing time hard to come by at Viktoria Žižkov where he managed 10 appearances in a year before being loaned to Slovakian side Nitra in February.

“I am getting playing time which is important,” adds Muleme who hopes to catch the eye of more prestigious clubs such Slovan Bratislava who are regular participants in European club competitions. Muleme, who has so far played five times for the club, is more concerned with helping his current side avoid relegation. Nitra are currently three points ahead of FK Pohronie, who are bottom and occupy the final relegation spot. The Slovak league consists 12 teams, who play three rounds.
After playing each team home and away, the league is divided into two with the top six and bottom teams facing off separately.