Harambee Stars were knocked out of the Africa Cup Of Nations Tournament after Benin played out a goalless draw with the defending Champions Cameroon. The result means that Benin will qualify ahead of Harambe Stars on virtue on being one of the 3rd best teams.
Both Kenya and Benin finished with 3 points in their respective groups but the West Africans finished with a better goal difference. Sebastian Migne’s side conceded 7 goals in 3 matches and only scored thrice, all of which came in the 3-2 East African derby win over Tanzania. Stars ended with a goal difference of -4.
Benin, on the other hand, conceded two and scored the same amount, thus finishing with a goal difference of 0.
It is the sixth time that Kenya has been Knockout of the tournament at the first stage. Migne’s team will, however, be proud of at least achieving the bare minimum by beating Tanzania, a result that equaled the highest point tally from a Kenyan team in the Biennial Tournament.
The earlier record was set by Jacob Mulei’s 2004 team which beat Burkina Faso 3-0 in the last group match.
Injuries to first team center backs, Joash Onyango and Brian Mandela robbed Migne of his best center back pairing. The team did not adapt quick enough and perhaps could have conceded a few more goals without Patrick Matasi’s brilliance.
As the Tournament grew to host 24 teams, so did the chances of qualifying for the knockout rounds. A win would have been enough to see Kenya go through. The feat was achieved against Tanzania but ultimately, a porous backline has denied this historic dream from materializing.