It may seem as though Kenya head coach Engin Firat has yet to field his best Harambee Stars starting lineup since taking charge of the national football team in 2021.
Kenya hosted Zimbabwe at Mandela National Stadium, Namboole on Friday as both sides kicked off their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.
They couldn’t be separated following a 0-0 draw at full-time, and as usual, the Turkish tactician was at it again in the post-match press conference highlighting challenges.
“Reality is that in football, you have to build up a team and to play football, so when I look at our team with the players that are missing, I become afraid,” Firat said before adding.
“The way we played with five local players, one player starting for the first time in the national team and then how Zimbabwe played with their full squad, there’s a gap.”
“From the beginning to the end, they played for a point that is reality, but we didn’t perform well either, and what we lacked today is we don’t have so many players on an international level, especially in the offence department,” he added.
Team captain and star striker Micheal Olunga, who plays for Al-Duhail in Qatar, was a notable absentee through injury, with French Ligue 1 side Reims’ defender Joseph Okumu deputizing in the captaincy role.
“If the likes of Olunga, Masoud Juma, Ayub Timbe and others are in, then we can talk about the track record and maybe also real success in Kenyan football,” he stated.
Troubles are not about to end for the 54-year-old because more players appeared to have suffered injuries.
“The problem is that I always have injured players, and in the beginning, Alphonce Omija got injured, so I don’t know the exact situation.”
“Erick Ouma couldn’t finish the game also with an injury, and at this point, we are unlucky, so I will have to see what the medical department says.”
“Let’s see if we have to invite more players. If so, it will be bad for us because it is bad enough if we lose more than half of the team,” Firat noted.
They are pooled in Group J alongside Zimbabwe, Namibia, and Cameroon. The latter will host Namibia at Japoma Stadium on Saturday.
As Zimbabwe will be hosting Cameroon at Namboole on Tuesday, September 10, Kenya will visit Namibia who are hosting from Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa.
“It’s a new game, and we aim for three points, and it will also depend on how Namibia will play because they play a more defensive, fast, and transitional game,” the Turkish highlighted.
“They are a very difficult team to play against, and I think it will depend on how they play against Cameroon. If they lose in Cameroon I think they’ll play more offensively.”
The issue of lack of infrastructure is becoming continental, and Firat couldn’t stop speaking about the difference between Uganda and Kenya at this stage.
“In Kenya, you always think you are World champions and underestimate everybody around you, so when you come here, for example, with the conditions they have and compare to ours, you never look at the mirror,” he added.
East Africa is preparing to host the rest of Africa for the first time in the region when AFCON comes to Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania in 2027.
