For yet another international break, Kenya men’s national football team, Harambee Stars, will miss the services of its skipper Michael Olunga, who will miss the country’s first two 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Qualifiers, due to injury.Download our Mozzart Sport app for more newsAs per Harambee Stars head coach Benni McCarthy, Olunga will sit out of the ties between Eritrea and Guinea, after picking up stiffness and strains in his legs.“He [Olunga] told me he has a little bit of stiffness in his legs, and the scan picked up some strains, and we decided to avoid taking risks so that he can be available for the next matches, and hopefully during AFCON 2027,” McCarthy told the media on Friday, 25 September.##NAJAVA_MECA_9985212##Olunga, who is just a goal shy of equalling William Ouma’s long-standing national record of 35 goals, had for the first time since October last year, been named in McCarthy’s final Stars squad.After not being preferred for last year’s November friendlies that mainly included young players, Olunga also missed out on two sets of Harambee Stars’ international breaks in March and June, owing to a serious pelvic injury sustained at his Qatari club Al Arabi SC, that required surgery.McCarthy cites 'loyalty' for overlooking Moses Shumah in Harambee Stars squadAfter spending over five months out of the game, the 32-year-old forward finally made his comeback on 21 August, but is certainly not back to his full fitness.Details of President Ruto, FIFA boss Infantino meeting emerge“Olunga came back from a serious injury and had a couple of appearances for his club, coming on as a sub, and then on Monday, he started his first match since coming back from the injury,” McCarthy said. “We want to avoid anything bad happening to him, and losing him for a long time. The smartest thing for me is to allow Michael to continue his rehab, and then we shall see.”Olunga’s withdrawal now means Kenya will need a fresh skipper to lead its team on Saturday, 26 September against Eritrea, at the Nyayo National Stadium (1600 EAT).BETTING GUIDE: Kenya vs Eritrea, match preview, team news and predictionRegarding who would take up the armband, McCarthy said: “We shall have a sit-down with the technical team and establish who will go out and represent us tomorrow. Previously, Abud Omar was the captain in CHAN, but we shall see how to go about it tomorrow. Once the team is sorted, then we can select the captain.”
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