Timothy Ouma: Slavia Prague Shuts UEFA Champions League Door for Harambee Stars Midfielder

Timothy Ouma’s hopes of staying at Czech giants Slavia Prague and playing in the UEFA Champions League have been dashed following reports that he is set to go out on another loan.

Ouma spent the whole of last season on loan at Polish club Lech Poznan, where he was a key player as he made 34 appearances in all competitions, as they won the league title to seal a ticket to the UEFA Champions League qualification round. He also featured in the Europa Conference League with Lech Poznan.

After the end of the deal, he returned to Prague with the hopes of winning back his spot in the team but that will not happen as according to Mozzart Sport, the 22-year-old is headed to Serbia on another season-long loan.

The report says Ouma is headed to Partizan Belgrade, one of the giant clubs in Serbia, who have won the Serbian league eight times, their last coming in 2017.

Ouma will arrive in Belgrade next week for the final formalities of his transfer with the deal including an option for Partizan Belgrade to buy, which signals Slavia Prague’s intention to offload the Kenyan.

Having impressed in his loan stint in Poland, Ouma has a chance to move to Serbia permanently if he does the same in Belgrade, with the club also set to compete in the UEFA Conference League next season, if they navigate past the tricky playoff round.

The Harambee Stars midfielder joined Slavia Prague in January 2025 from Swedish side Elfsborg for a reported Ksh473 million fee and after shining in Sweden both in the league and Europa League, it was hoped that he would slot in directly into the senior team.

However, Ouma endured a frustrating four months in the Czech Republic, making just one appearance for the senior team, while playing twice for the second-string side, and at the end of the season, he moved to Poland on loan to secure regular playing time.

With the move out of Slavia Prague, Ouma’s dream of playing in the prestigious Champions League next season has been dashed again, given the club won the Czech league and sealed a direct ticket to the group phase of Europe’s premier club football competition.