Charles Nyende
9 June 2008
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Nairobi — Pascal Feindouno of St Etienne and Guinea down, bring on Benjani Mwaruwari of Manchester City and Zimbabwe!
On the evidence of Harambee Stars comfortable 2-0 win over Syli Nationale on Saturday at Nyayo Stadium, this should be a fearful battle cry to the Warriors of Zimbabwe when they come visiting this weekend.
The win against Guinea was, in all fairness, deserved. Kenya had most of the chances and could have won by an even bigger margin.
Things could not have started any better for Kenya when lead striker Dennis Oliech showed he had pace to burn to reach a long punt ahead of the Guinea defence and roll the ball home inside three minutes.
The game plan suddenly changed for Kenya from then on.
Instead of meeting a cautious visiting team playing tightly, they were confronted with one relentlessly pushing forward as they chased the game.
It meant plenty of empty space for Kenya's offensive to exploit.
The second goal was classic counter-attack. Guinea, desperately pressing forward early in the second half, lost the ball just outside the Kenyan 18 metre box.
Close attention
Patrick Oboya picked the remains, raced in-field and spread a through ball to the diagonally running Oliech.
The Auxerre striker was enjoying his game this afternoon.
He seems to have gotten the measure of the two Guinea central defenders, Bobo Balde and Oumar Kalabane.
Even with their close attention, he managed to get his foot out and guide the ball to the far corner of the net. Kenya were well on their way to a resounding victory against the sixth best ranked team Africa.
Oliech rattled the upright, Austine Makacha missed a sitter and Allan Wanga's fierce goal-bound drive from just outside the box was stopped by a desperately stuck out leg - the defender needed attention from the medics - as Kenya threatened to run riot towards the end of the match.
So was it all good? Not really, for there were worries in Kenya's defensive display.
Anthony Kimani had a torrid time guarding Fode Mansare. The Toulouse forward repeatedly twisted him up in stitches on the left wing.
Determined wall
The impressive Mariga, masterful all afternoon when he was operating on right side for Kenya, tirelessly dropped back to assist his right back.
The central pair of George Owino and Edgar Ochieng put out a determined wall in the area, cutting off the crosses from Monsare and any ball directed into the area.
But our backline figures rarely ventured up field with the ball to add that extra man, which may explain Kenya's inability to hold on to possession for long, seemingly outnumbered.
Titus Mulama, who was supposed to give width to Kenya's play on the left side, was not himself on this day. He repeatedly lost possession, gave wayward passes and should have been removed earlier than the second half for the more direct Kevin Ochieng, who staked a claim to a starting line up.
Robert Mambo and Austine Makacha ran the miles without particularly standing out.
Oliech's strike, partner Patrick Oboya, did not offer much potency in attack but was tireless in his tackling and ball winning abilities.
Oliech and Mariga did no wrong to their international ratings while Arnold Origi was a reassuring act in between the posts, though he was never really tested.
A work in progress then?
Coach Francis Kimanzi said the team had good depth and ability and just needed to be together for longer.
The say practice makes perfect. He will be with the team for the third straight week and Harambee Stars can only improve.
Off the pitch, it was unacceptable the way the match was handled by the organisers. More fans than the 35,000 capacity stadium can hold found their way in, some without tickets.
There was a pitch invasion after the match, with fans dangerously mobbing the players. In short, security arrangements were woefully inadequate. Clearly little has been learnt from the unfortunate incidents in 2005 during an African Cup of Nations qualifier between Kenya and Morocco, when a teenage fan was trampled to death following a stampede in an overcrowded, you guessed it, Nyayo Stadium.
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