Vastly-improved Cape Verde lie in wait for limping Kenya
What you need to know:
- Dennis Oliech, then a teenage prodigy scored the winner as Kenya, under coach Jacob ‘Ghost’ Mulee, to their fifth and last appearance at the African Cup of Nations finals held in Tunisia in 2004.
- Cape Verde’s Blue Sharks, coach by Rui Aguas, are currently ranked 41 while Kenya lies in position 131. And going by Sunday’s performance at Kasarani, where the home team fluffed a host of chances in a frustrating afternoon for the success-starved fans, the team faces an uphill task in the match.
The last time Kenya locked horns with Cape Verde Islands on July 5 2003, Harambee Stars won 1-0 at the Safaricom Stadium, Kasarani.
Dennis Oliech, then a teenage prodigy scored the winner as Kenya, under coach Jacob ‘Ghost’ Mulee, to their fifth and last appearance at the African Cup of Nations finals held in Tunisia in 2004.
The home victory coupled by an away win in Cape Verde on October 12, 2002 saw Stars complete a double over the Atlantic Ocean Islanders.
Back then, the Atlantic Ocean Islanders were struggling but the country has since made major strides in football, while Kenya has regressed.
As such, the two-leg clash against Cape Verde between November 9-17 will be major concern for Stars head coach Bobby Williamson, his technical bench and the playing unit.
They will have to improve on the team’s lethargy in front of goal if they are to complete another double over their opponents in the 2018 World Cup preliminaries.
Cape Verde ranked 41st globally
Cape Verde’s Blue Sharks, coach by Rui Aguas, are currently ranked 41 while Kenya lies in position 131. And going by Sunday’s performance at Kasarani, where the home team fluffed a host of chances in a frustrating afternoon for the success-starved fans, the team faces an uphill task in the match.
On two occasions, Stars rattled the wood-work while lead striker Michael Olunga missed clear chances from the box when he should have used his physical advantage to bully his way into scoring.
Olunga will also need to make his weaker right foot more effective to score from whichever angle. Although Olunga remains Kenya’s best bet in the central-forward position, he will need a more assured play-maker to help him bury his chances.
Ayub Timbe, drafted into team to influence crucial matches like Sunday’s, was also wasteful. Assistant coach Musa Otieno has said Kenya needs proper preparation to beat Cape Verde and reach the group stage of the qualifiers.
“We could not score due to bad luck but we did well to keep a clean sheet. Our next assignment calls for proper preparations. We want results and it has to be a joint effort,” Otieno, who was in the squad that floored Cape Verde en-route to the 2004 Afcon finals, said.
