Nairobi — Kenya's top striker Dennis Oliech always has had a knack for turning a negative into a positive.

While everyone would be screaming their heads off after being dropped from the national team, Oliech is taking his omission from the squad positively.

The Auxerre striker, who has scored five goals for Kenya in the 2010 World Cup/African Cup of Nations qualifiers, will miss his second successive match in as many years against Nigeria on November 14.

And not due to injury, but out of a "long love-hate" relationship the striker has had with Harambee Stars' head coach, Antoine Hey.

"I have no bad feelings for the coach. I believe he knows what he wants for the team," said Oliech, in a phone interview from his base in France.

Their frosty association, which has been bubbling since the appointment of Hey in March, includes a burst-up in the changing room between the two after the 3-0 drubbing in Abuja, and is believed to have led to his (Oliech's) substitution at half time, during the 2-1 home win over Mozambique in June.

His exclusion from the squad certainly raised more than a few eyebrows. Once the jewel in the Kenyan football crown, Oliech has seen his reputation both on and off the pitch take a hit since his departure for the greener pastures of Mathare United in 2003.

Raised a few eyebrows

Love him or hate him, Oliech is still the standard that Kenya strikers are judged with and the numbers bear proof. Since 2001, Oliech has scored 15 of Kenya's 31 goals, an amazing rate of a goal in every two matches for any striker to match.

Remember that indelible strike against Cape Verde that ensured Kenya's qualification for the 2004 Nation cup finals? While other professional players have been faking their fitness, Oliech's recent form is pleasing. In Auxerre's last two matches, he enjoyed 135 out of the maximum 180 matches.

"There have been a lot of talks about my fitness, but if those claims are true, how come I've been fielded (by Auxerre) for those minutes?" posed the former Kamukunji High School player.

The striker has been hinting for some time he'd like to come back to the fold and continue from where he left. The most recent come-get-me call was in the last two weeks, when he said he would "think twice" about returning.

But Hey is either not getting the signals or he's turning a deaf ear.

"There will be a lot of surprises when I name the squad. I will give the local players more playing time. Each player must fight for a place in the team," Hey had said before naming his traveling team to Maputo, Mozambique two weeks ago.

"It doesn't matter who the coach selects for the team, what matters is having the country at heart. And I don't think Hey has the country at heart. This is going to hurt us badly in our campaign," he said. "There's no doubt that Oliech is our best striker and we really need him in the Stars' squad in our final match against Nigeria," noted Isaac Juma, Stars' Juju man.