Harambee Stars’ failure to grab a win against lowly ranked Eritrea attracted heavy criticism from Kenyans who left the stadium sadder than when they came.Download our Mozzart Sport app for more newsKenya hosted Eritrea in a 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Qualifier Group D match played on Saturday, 26 September at the Nyayo National Stadium.The Harambee Stars were destined for an embarrassing defeat from Nahom Girmai’s 36th minute opener, but were rescued by an 87th minute equalizer from Ryan Ogam, who ensured the match ended in a 1-1 draw.##NAJAVA_MECA_9985378##In a group that has Guinea and South Africa, Kenya were favourites to win the match due to their superior (109) FIFA world ranking to Eritrea (184), but not even the home advantage could propel Kenya to a win.Mozzart Sport was present at the Nyayo National Stadium and caught up with dejected fans who expressed their anger with the national team and the government.“That was such an underwhelming performance by Harambee Stars. It was disappointing to say the least. As fans, we do not deserve to be treated as such.I understand we had challenges heading into the game but for me that should not be a reason for not beating Eritrea. I expected that we would win with a smaller margin because we have not trained for a couple of days.We were playing at home and Eritrea are so many places below us in the FIFA rankings. If we cannot comfortably win against them, what should we expect when we play away to Guinea? These players must get serious and play like they represent a nation with over 50 million Kenyans,” said Raymond Kiprotich.Harambee Stars midfielder identifies area of concern ahead of Guinea clashThe same sentiments were shared by Gideon Asewe, who feels the team suffers from lack of competition.“The players can afford to give such a poor performance when they know that their place in the team is secure.The recent utterances by coach Benni McCarthy, stating that national team call ups are based on loyalty is another low that we have sunk as a country. Representing the nation must always be about talent and dorm and not how loyal one is to the national team coach.We only had Ogam to rely on and on a day that he was missing chances like against Eritrea, Shummah (Moses) would bail us out but instead of the coach looking at his talent, he valued loyalty,” stated Asewe.Harambee Stars coach explains continued trust in midfielder despite backlashOn his part, Kelvin Kiplimo picked issues with the decision by the players to strike, noting that the matter would have been handled in a different way.“That decision by players to strike by refusing to train was very unwise. It has cost the country three points against a weak opponent.I believe there was a better way of handling the matter but still achieve the same results. Harambee Stars is a big team that attracts attention across the country. A persistent complaint in the media throughout the week would have caused uproar from Kenyans, capture the attention of the government and have the team sorted out without refusing to train. The money can be paid later but the game cannot be replayed,” remarked Kiplimo.TACTICAL ANALYSIS: How Eritrea's midfield overloads frustrated Harambee Stars in 2027 AFCON QualifierGor Mahia fan Walter Ojalla believes that Harambee Stars reaped what they sowed.“To be honest, we did not deserve to win the game. Our performance was way below average. We were so passive in the game and lacked the necessary fitness to win the game.You do not expect to win a match against a team that has trained the whole week when you hold one training session. Actually, a loss would have been a fair result,” he opined.##NAJAVA_MECA_9984773##On her part Lavi Lavy blamed the loss on the way the federation and government has handled the national team.“We have been handling the national team like it is some village team. How do we have a national team where players are always complaining about unpaid allowances and even when they are paid, there is contention on the rates? Players need an enabling environment in order to perform well.McCarthy has also complained of lacking a work permit, over a year since his appointment. We do not need such drama less than a year before we host AFCON,” she lamented.McCarthy defends Harambee Stars after disrupted preparations for Eritrea drawOn the Harambee Stars Facebook page, Boniface Ouma picked issues with the foreign based players.“We should be relying more on the local based players because they give their all as they want to shine and be scouted by elite clubs. Foreign-based players on the other hand are cautious asthey try to avoid injuries.”
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