Harambee stars are expected to face Ethiopia on Wednesday in Addis Ababa. The much anticipated game which Kenya must win to renew their hopes in participating in the Afcon come 2019. The last time Kenya played in the competition was in 2004 under coach Jacob’ Ghost’ Mulee which was held in Tunisia.They went on to lose 3-1 to Mali, 3-0 to the hosts before defeating Burkina Faso by the same margin in their final Group match to end their campaign with maximum points.
Harambee Stars will take on Walya Antelopes of Ethiopia in the Afcon qualifying match on Wednesday. The Sebastian Migne led side has so far managed to collect three points in Group F which was against the black stars of Ghana who registered a 5-0 win against Ethiopia in the opener.
As it stands, Group F has only three teams; Kenya, Ethiopia and Ghana. Sierra Leone have been banned from taking part in the qualifiers following government interference. This means that the 2-1 win against Kenya and the 1-0 loss to Ethiopia does not stand.
The elimination of Sierra Leone places both teams at the best chance of sailing through to the next level. Much hope and accolade has been placed on Harambee stars who for the first time recorded a win against the African champions of Ghana in Kasarani Nairobi.
This year, the East African side has a perfect chance of making it to the continental show piece. The national team needs just four points to make it to the finals set for next year. Already, they have managed to get three points against the toughest challengers in the Group, Ghana.
The match against Ethiopia is relatively easier as compared to the one against the Black Stars. Getting a win on Wednesday means Kenya will make their work easier ahead of the second leg set for the Kasarani Stadium on Sunday.
As it stands in the Fifa rankings, Kenya is placed in the 107th position as compared to Ethiopia who are ranked 149th. If Kenya wins, they have a slight chance of climbing higher, but Walya Antelopes will definitely shoot higher by managing to get maximum points.
Although Harambee stars have experienced a lot of challenges in their camp mostly financial problems, they aim to over look beyond the issues to produce a remarkable result against Ethiopia that will make them proceed to the next level.
“Confidence is key in this qualifiers; if the Stars manages to get maximum points away, it will give the players belief that they can make it to the top,” Migne said. The last time the two teams faced each other it was in a friendly, in Nairobi and it ended one all.
“This is a different competition, six points for Kenya will put them top of the table with two games remaining, and a real chance of qualification. Knowing that a point is what they will be looking for to qualify to the Afcon, the players will definitely give their best and enable them get their chance,” Harambee stars coach added.
The coach who issued a warning note to the government of Kenya to clear his salaries dues is optimistic about his side .The team did not have a training camp but he managed to take the players through the training session.
The team expects a lot of inspiration especially from Olunga and other player who play international football to drive the team to an away win against Ethiopia. The win against Ethiopia is the only option because their return match against Ghana is expected to be a tough encounter.