Firat: Why I am not happy with Harambee Stars’ performance
By Joel Sang, June 15, 2023Harambee Stars head coach Engin Firat has explained why their performance against Pakistan on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, was not convincing.
Kenya outwitted the Middle East nation and registered a 1-0 victory, which was their first win in the Four-Nations tournament, but the coach has picked out the flaws in their game.
Not happy Firat
In the first half, Moses Shummah scored the only goal that separated the two nations, but Firat was not an entirely happy man.
“I am not happy because we did not play the way I wanted, we were a bit slow in passing. Pakistan played so deep and close,” Firat said in his post-match press conference.
According to the former Moldova coach, Kenya would have registered a bigger scoreline had they converted all their chances into goals.
The CECAFA nation was dominant in the first half as they pressed Pakistan, but the Asians managed to contain their rivals.
Kenya were threatening as they launched their attacks mainly from the wings but lost chances that would have actually put the game beyond Pakistan’s reach.
“They fought like it was a final; congratulations to them.
We had to find solutions, and of course, we had a lot of opportunities that we did not finish, and this does not change the fact that I am not happy with the way we played.
“This is why I did not like how we played,” the coach added.
In the second half, Pakistan were more dangerous compared to how they were in the first half. They came close to getting an equalizer late in the second half, but KCB goalkeeper Bryne Odhiambo made a crucial save to deny them a goal.
Missing players
Firat’s charges travelled to Mauritius without some of his key players, who are sidelined by injuries and other reasons.
The centre-back pair of Joseph Okumu and Brian Mandela were not available due to injuries, while Kenneth Muguna was not included as he sorted out his contract issues with his Tanzanian club, Azam FC.
All these players were in the squad that faced Iran during the last international friendly on Tuesday, March 28, 2023. Okumu and Mandela played then, but Muguna was an unused substitute.
“There are seven players from the squad that played against Iran in March that are not here with us, so we have a lot of new players.
“We had a lot of new players feature in their first game for the national team, and therefore it was not at the level I expected.
“Some of the players had difficulties playing on the artificial pitch, we don’t have artificial pitches in Kenya, and my players struggled to cope.”
“We won, but it was not at the level that I expected. I expected more from us,” he added.
Kenya will play their next – and last game in the tournament – on Sunday, June 18, 2023, against Mauritius.
Kenya vs Mauritius
To Firat, the Islanders will give his boys a tough test, but he asserts that a tough challenge will be good for Harambee Stars.
“It will be tough, and I saw Mauritius vs Pakistan, and they were really pressing.
“The way they played, the tempo they made, and how they finished. Therefore, it is going to be a tough game but also a nice game for us,” he concluded.
Kenya is the only nation that will play fewer games in the non-competitive tournament because their fixture against Djibouti was erased.
The game could not go on because the East Africans arrived a day late, and given the FIFA rules on players’ rest in between matches, it was not possible for the game to be played.