Who Is Collins Sichenje And Why Is Half Of Kenya Flooding Charlton's Socials

Who Is Collins Sichenje And Why Is Half Of Kenya Flooding Charlton's Socials

Charlton announced the signing of 22-year-old center back Collins Sichenje on Deadline Day. And it’s fair to say that his big following of Kenyan fans were excited as they swarmed Charlton’s socials, but most predominantly their Twitter (X). Their first three posts about the Kenyan have already amassed 14k likes on two of them and 10k likes on another, with a combined total of over one million views.

We're delighted to announce the signing of Kenyan international Collins Sichenje from Serbian SuperLiga side FK Vojvodina 🤝

Welcome to south-east London, Collins! ❤️#cafc

— Charlton Athletic FC (@CAFCofficial) February 2, 2026

Who Is Collins Sichenje?

The Kenyan was born in Butere, Kenya. He started off his professional career with Green Commandos before moving to Kenyan Premier League side AFC Leopards at just 16 years old. He would then be loaned out for a brief spell at PAOK B before returning to his homeland. He would continue playing for AFC Leopards for three more years until he got his big move to Europe, as he signed permanently for Swedish top-flight side AIK in 2022.

Following his transfer to AIK, he would struggle for consistent game time, as he only played 12 times for the Swedish side before being loaned out to KuPS in Finland. He played 23 times for them, and once his loan with them was complete, he would once again be loaned from AIK, but this time he would be heading to Vojvodina in the top flight of Serbian football on a six-month loan.

The then 21-year-old would thrive at his new club, where he would be a consistent name on the team sheet; this impressive spell at the Serbian club would cause the loan to become a permanent deal in 2024. He would even get a taste of two European competitions as he would try to help Vojvodina progress through the Europa League Qualifiers and the Conference League Qualifiers; however, his and his teammates' efforts would all be in vain.

Going into the 2025/26 season, he would remain their rock at the back, as he would start every single one of their 18 games so far this season. This brilliant form caught the attention of the Charlton scouts; they liked what they saw, and on Deadline Day they paid £1.75 million to get their man.

Why Are Kenyans Going So Crazy?

Well, for a nation like Kenya, they aren’t blessed with an abundance of talented players such as nations like France, Argentina, England, etc. But the few standout players are worshipped by Kenya’s extremely loyal fan base, who just want what’s best for their best players. And moving to a club in English football, even if it isn’t the Premier League, is a huge deal, and boy have they made a big deal over this move.

Dear Charlton Athletic,

Congratulations on acquiring the signature of Collins Sichenje. It is truly an honour for you.

As per the rich traditions and very serious football customs of our country, kindly take note of the following essential conditions for his stay and success:… https://t.co/DI5o4nFzo4

— SANKEI🇰🇪 (@SankeiSaitoti) February 3, 2026

From tweets such as this, it shows how much they love Collins Sichenje and how much national pride they have for their players; it also shows the funny side of things, with many Kenyans joking about giving him the keys to the stadium, making him captain and many, many more.

Now this certainly isn’t the first instance of this happening amongst players from smaller footballing nations who make a big move. As a Brighton fan I can remember two players in recent years who had this effect on Brighton’s social media.

Firstly we have South Africa’s Percy Tau. He moved from Anderlecht to Brighton in the 2020/21 season, and along with him came his loyal South African following. At first things started out in a good way, similar to what the Kenyans are doing with Charlton. But as things progressed, it was clear to see Percy Tau wasn’t very good, which led to him playing fewer and fewer games. This caused his fans to become angry, and things quickly turned sour as the replies to posts were quickly replaced with negative comments and even some abuse.

The second player who springs to my mind is Alireza Jahanbakhsh. The Iranian signed to the Seagulls from AZ Alkmaar for a record fee for an Iranian, costing £17 million. And just like Percy Tau, the club socials were flooded with Iranian fans. This was a big moment for the country; not only did he become the country's most expensive footballer, but it was also a move to the biggest league in the world, the Premier League.

However, just like Percy Tau’s time at Brighton, it was severely disappointing. Across 40 Premier League games he scored just twice, albeit one was an incredible bicycle kick. Things never worked out for him at Brighton, and when it was clear he was out of favour with Graham Potter, the Iranian fans turned on the club and bombarded the club's social media with negative comments and abuse.

When things like this happen at clubs, it’s funny and amazing to see the sheer following that some of these players have from their countries. If all goes well with the player at the club, then the funny and positive interactions remain, but you defiantly don’t want things to turn sour, trust me.