Select league team to face Spanish sides in friendly

A SportPesa Premier League all-star team is scheduled to play Spanish lower-tier league sides Cordoba and Sevilla Atlético next month.

The venues for the games have not been confirmed, but La Liga representative in Kenya, Oliver Dodd, on Monday explained that both games will be played in southern Spain (Andalusia region) on July 19 and 22.

This is the first of a number of matches lined up under a recently signed partnership between La Liga and Kenyan Premier League management aimed at improving local football.

The team will be guided by Harambee Stars coach Stanley Okumbi, and he will be assisted by Harambee Stars Under-20 coach John Kamau.

A team of 20 local-based players had been named early last month, but two players will be dropped in the course of the week before the team leaves for Spain on Friday.

“It was tough making a selection out of the 400 players in the premier league right now. I wanted to have more players who are below age 23, because they are the future of the national team, but I had to leave many of them out because they did not have the necessary documentation.

Okumbi was speaking about players like Eston Esiye of Kakamega Homeboyz and Said Tsuma of Thika United who have performed exemplary well in the league this season.

Dodd said: “The administrators who will travel with us will attend seminars on Youth Academies, Stadia Safety and Security, Club Licensing, and many other topics relating to modern day football management.

The team is expected to engage local league side Posta Rangers in a friendly match on Tuesday, and the final 18-man travelling party will be named on Wednesday.

The players who will travel to Spain are likely to form the backbone of Harambee Stars team that will feature in the African Nations Championship next year.