Football Kenya Federation (FKF) junior scout Francis Obado has lifted the lid on how he identified some of the players who went on to represent Kenya at the inaugural FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival in Azerbaijan.Download our Mozzart Sport app for more newsObado, one of the scouts recruited and trained by FKF to identify promising young footballers across the country, revealed how grassroots tournaments and school competitions helped him spot some of the talents who eventually made Patrick Nyale's squad.Among the players he identified were goalkeeper Elvis Odhiambo, Bleza Barack, popularly known as Maringo, Javan Ochieng, and Duncan Muya, all of whom made it into his scouting network.##NAJAVA_MECA_10101473##His involvement in the talent identification exercise was particularly rewarding, with Kenya's youngsters going on to deliver an impressive campaign in Baku, finishing as the highest-ranked nation from the CECAFA region.The Kenyan side finished 26th overall among 189 participating countries, ahead of nine other nations from the region.South Sudan were the closest CECAFA challenger, finishing 48th, while Uganda came 69th. Rwanda were 80th, Somalia 100th, Burundi 104th, Tanzania 114th, Sudan 140th, Ethiopia 162nd, and Djibouti 170th.For Obado, the journey began long before the team travelled to Azerbaijan.His scouting work took him to school competitions and community tournaments, where he assessed young players and submitted promising prospects through FKF's talent identification system.Mariga, six others ousted at chaotic FKF SGM in MeruThe former Madira Soccer Assassins assistant coach, who currently works with Nyakach Girls, says his first encounters with some of the players came through routine visits to local football competitions.He was particularly impressed by goalkeeper Odhiambo, whom he first watched during school games involving Goseta, and Bleza, whom he spotted at a community tournament in Kisumu."I first spotted Maringo at a community tournament in Kisumu. I was impressed by what I saw when he played at Railway Grounds. Elvis, on the other hand, caught my attention during school games for Goseta. His reflexes stood out, and despite being a grade below some of his opponents, he was a class above the rest," the sharp-eyed coach told Mozzart Sport.Interestingly, Bleza's route into the FKF talent identification system was not straightforward.Obado explained that the youngster was not included in his initial portal submission but was eventually identified through the federation's regional scouting network.FKF instructed its scouts to submit players by region, allowing promising talents to be identified through different branches.##NAJAVA_MECA_10101472##"At the time, we had so many players in our region, and there were some we could not immediately place on the FKF portal. In fact, Bleza Barack was not even on my initial list submitted through the system.However, because we were required to submit players according to their respective regions, we liaised with the Homa Bay branch, which submitted him. That is how FKF picked him up, and he eventually got an opportunity to be part of the team. That is how most of the players were identified," he explained.Obado also named Javan and Muya among the youngsters he identified during the scouting exercise and subsequently submitted for consideration.The scouting program was part of FKF's wider effort to establish a structured talent identification system, with more than 1,000 players going through the process as the federation assembled a pool from which the final squad for the Azerbaijan assignment was selected.Kenya's participation in the competition marked an important opportunity for the country's emerging footballers to test themselves against international opposition in FIFA's new youth development initiative.AFC Leopards chairman Ambani explains his single vote against Mariga's ousterThe week-long festival, held from 24 to 30 October, brought together 189 national teams in an eight-a-side format designed to provide young footballers with international exposure and competitive opportunities.Unlike conventional knockout tournaments, the competition used different performance tiers to ensure every participating country remained involved until the final day.Nyale's charges made an encouraging start, going unbeaten in the group stage to finish top of Group Z and qualify for the Tier A classification phase.Kenya eventually wrapped up the tournament with five wins, two draws, and three defeats from 10 matches, scoring 27 goals. Captain Innocent Media was among the standout performers, finishing with nine goals.Mariga's faction reveals next move after FKF ousterTheir 26th-place finish made them the best-performing country from the CECAFA region, while Spain claimed the overall Tier A title after beating Czechia 3-0 in the final.The young Kenyan footballers received a hero's welcome upon returning to Nairobi, bringing an encouraging end to a campaign that also offered a glimpse into the country's emerging talent.
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