Guinea coach Paulo Duarte has questioned the fairness of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying format ahead of Thursday’s meeting with Kenya in Conakry.Download Our MozzartSport App For More NewsDuarte’s side face early pressure after starting their campaign with a 2-1 defeat to South Africa in Johannesburg on Saturday.##NAJAVA_MECA_9985363##The result leaves Guinea bottom of Group D with no points as they prepare to welcome Harambee Stars, who secured a point from their opening fixture against Eritrea.The Portuguese coach has taken issue with Group D's structure, where Kenya’s status as one of the three hosts guarantees them a place at the 2027 tournament.That leaves Guinea, South Africa and Eritrea competing for just one qualification berth, a situation Duarte believes should not have been allowed by CAF.Kenyans express disappointment after Eritrea hold Harambee Stars at Nyayo“And I don’t understand how the draw was made when you look at the draw actually with the team of Kenya, Eritrea and South Africa I don’t think it’s fair in terms of the draw,” he told the media after his team’s loss to South Africa, as quoted by iDiski Times.Despite his criticism, Duarte insists Guinea must focus on the matches ahead, starting with the visit of Kenya as they attempt to recover from their disappointing start.“But we have more games to play and the away game is coming, and the game at home as well; we will do everything to actually get a result. But I feel the way that the draw was made by CAF is not right; it’s not fair.”Baraza identifies former Shabana striker as best solution to Harambee Stars’ scoring woesThursday’s encounter has consequently taken on added importance for the Syli National, who missed out on the 2025 AFCON and cannot afford another setback if they are to return to the continental stage.Duarte maintains that qualification remains the ultimate target and believes there are still several routes available to his team.“Our objective is to qualify for the AFCON,” he added. “There are different options in terms of going through the qualification.”The coach has also urged his players to put the South Africa defeat behind them and concentrate on collecting maximum points from their remaining matches.“And obviously today [Saturday] we lost the game, which is already scratched, but we are going to put everything on our side to actually win the remaining games. But we want to win the remaining games so we can advance to the qualification of the AFCON.”Harambee Stars midfielder identifies area of concern ahead of Guinea clash.