Sammy Kitula
10 October 2009
Cote d'Ivoire secured a place at the World Cup finals in South Africa next year after Didier Drogba struck within two minutes of coming on as a substitute to clinch a 1-1 draw with Malawi on Saturday.
The Ivorians, needing only a draw with the bottom-placed team in African qualifying Group E, had to come from behind after the hosts took a surprise 64th minute lead through Jacob Ngwira.
Drogba's immediate intervention from the substitutes' bench put the favourites back on course and they held out for the point they needed.
The result brought an end to the Ivorians' 100 percent run in the group but confirmed a second successive trip to the World Cup for the west African nation.
Ghana have already qualified from Group D, while South Africa qualify as hosts. Three more places from Africa are still up for grabs.
And with the daily countdown to the start of the second last match of the 2010 World Cup/African Cup of Nations at hand, Kenya's national team, Harambee Stars,' head coach, Antoine Hey, must feel like a chef ready to make the perfect dish, only to find that he has the wrong quantities of each ingredient.
It's possible that Hey might yet find the right mix and steer the Kenyans into the ACN.
But there is a greater probability that a winning recipe will remain elusive, with the Stars, especially given the difficult results the team has been delivering.
At issue is the present composition of the national team's roster, a situation not entirely of Hey's making given how injuries, the crowded international calendar, and the reluctance of players to click during the time of duty, have conspired to limit his choices.
"This is our second last chance, if we want to be in Angola (for the African Cup of Nations) next year. Our aim has always been to be among the finalists in the continental football mundial," noted the team's assistant coach, Twahir Muhidin.
In midfield, the German almost has too many options, with Robert Mambo, Austin Makacha and Victor Mugabe all poised to get significant playing time.
In fact, Hey's midfield is so deep that captain Musa Otieno looks set to reprise the central defender role he assumed during parts of previous qualifying matches.
Stars' presumed starting back four look solid enough, with George Owino partnering Otieno in the middle while John Njoroge and Jokins Atudo man the left and right flanks, respectively.
Gor's defender Julius Owino will provide cover slightly deeper from the middle, but Hey and company will be communing with all manner of soccer deities in the hope that injury, suspension or poor form doesn't rob them of Otieno or Njoroge.
There simply isn't anyone else on the roster who possesses the same level of comfort at those positions.
Pascal Ochieng or Godfrey Kokoyo could move there in a pinch, but the thought of either one of them going up against Tunisia's Issam Jomaa is enough to give one the shakes.
But for all the concerns about the defense, it at least delivered a near laudable display in past qualifiers, save for that footballing lesson they learnt in their 0-3 loss to Nigeria in June. But the same can't be said for the team's attack.
Granted, expecting a sharp performance when the team had barely been in Tunisia for 120 hours is asking a lot, but a greater worry is how the respective pieces will fit together, especially as it pertains to Allan Wanga, Patrick Oboya and an average Taiwo Atieno.
Withdrawn striker
Mugabe, the younger brother to Parma's MacDonald Mariga has been most effective in an advanced midfield/withdrawn striker role, and his lack of defense isn't an issue when there are two central midfielders playing behind him.
But if Hey opts to use Wanga at the top of a three-man diamond formation like he did during Stars' match against Super Eagles, the two outside midfielders will be required to pinch in and help out defensively.
This presumably allows Mugabe or Oboya to bomb forward, but their ability to provide the kind of service Dennis Oliech thrives on is an open question, and with the other flank players otherwise engaged, both Wanga and Oboya might find themselves starved of service.
That leaves Hey in the position of employing a four-man midfield, forgoing the twin towers approach, and moving Julius Owino more room out on the flank.
Hey has precious few days left to come up with a winning concoction prior to his team's last game on November 14 against Nigeria, a game the Kenyans absolutely must win in order to have any hopes of advancing.
Probable team: goalkeeper: Willis Ochieng (IFK, Finland). Defenders: Jockins Atudo (Tusker), John Njoroge (Yanga), Musa Otieno (Cleveland City Stars, USA), Julius Owino (Gor) and George Owino (Yanga). Midfielders: Austin Makacha (IK Sirius Sweden), Robert Mambo (GIF Sundsvall, Sweden) and Victor Mugabe (Germinal Beerschot, Belgium). Strikers: Allan Wanga (Petro Atletico, Angola) and Patrick Oboya (FK Siad Most, Czech Republic).
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All hail the Ivorians. This will be a great confidence booster going to 2010. Share your ideas with us as we head for SA 2010 at www.africaplays.com - Penya Africa!
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