McCarthy explains why Harambee Stars failed to beat lowly-ranked Eritrea

Harambee Stars head coach Benni McCarthy has explained why the team failed to beat Eritrea in their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Group D qualifier at Nyayo National Stadium on Saturday, 26 September.Kenya were held to a 1-1 draw after Ryan Ogam’s 87th-minute equaliser cancelled out Nahom Girmai’s first-half opener for Eritrea.Download our Mozzart Sport App for more newsSpeaking to the press after the match, McCarthy attributed Kenya’s underwhelming performance to the players’ strike over unpaid allowances, which disrupted the team’s preparations.“We simply had only one training session before the match, where you can hardly train tactically with the team. We are all aware we had a lot of issues in the background that saw us lose four days of training.We were lacking in fitness and finding that final pass. You could see players holding their knees and going down towards the end of the game due to tired legs,” said McCarthy.##NAJAVA_MECA_9984464##The 48-year-old coach also pointed to the chances missed by Ogam in the first half, noting that the forward could have put Kenya in a stronger position.“Ogam, for instance, missed two glorious chances which, on another day, he would have scored,” McCarthy added.Baraza identifies former Shabana striker as best solution to Harambee Stars’ scoring woesDespite the result, the former Bafana Bafana striker said he was pleased with his team’s overall performance, particularly their dominance in possession.“I am so proud of the team for the performance because we dominated all aspects of the game but were not fortunate to find the back of the net,” he said.Harambee Stars will now turn their attention to their second Group D fixture, an away clash against Guinea in Conakry on Thursday, 1 October. TACTICAL ANALYSIS: How Eritrea's midfield overloads frustrated Harambee Stars in 2027 AFCON QualifierBoth sides will be seeking their first win of the campaign.Before then, Kenya will have to make up for lost preparation time as McCarthy looks to get his squad back on the training ground and ready for the crucial encounter against the West Africans.