Harambee Stars to play African minnows after abandoning planned Asia friendlies
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Reading Time: 3min | Fri. 29.05.26. | 15:50
FKF has explained why the team will no longer travel to central Asia for friendlies
Kenya men’s national football team ,Harambee Stars,will now play minnows Lesotho twice in the June friendlies after abandoning their planned trip to Central Asia.
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Football Kenya Federation (FKF) on Friday, 29 May confirmed the changed plans for the team, which had initially been scheduled to face Kyrgyzstan and Palestine on Wednesday, 3 June and Saturday, 6 June respectively.
“The Harambee Stars’ June international window has undergone changes following logistical challenges that affected the initially planned fixtures,” FKF wrote in their communique, explaining the reason for completely doing away with their trip to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
In the place of the two fixtures, Benni McCarthy’s charges will now make due with a shorter journey to South Africa, where they will come up against Lesotho onThursday, 4 June and Sunday, 7 June, respectively.
Both games, which will kick off at 4 PM (EAT), will be staged at the Lucas Moripe Stadium.
Just like with the earlier fixtures, the Harambee Stars technical bench intends to use the two games against an inferior opponent to assess and prepare the team ahead of the upcoming 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, which begin in September.
In regards to the latest FIFA Rankings, Kenya, who occupy position 111, are 34 places higher than The Crocodiles, ranked 145th.
On head-to-head, Kenya holds an advantage, having only lost once out of their previous eight meetings.
Lesotho, on the other hand, has not enjoyed this fixture, losing three of those match-ups, and holding out for four draws.
The last time the two nations faced each other was on 3 August 2014, when Kenya settled for a barren draw in an AFCON second-round qualifier at the Nyayo National Stadium.
In the preceding first leg, played at the Setsoto National Stadium in Maseru on 20 July 2014, Harambee Stars registered their first-ever loss to the hosts, going down to a second half goal by Tšepo Seturumane to lose 1-0.
Whether the two games end up providing McCarthy with much insight remains to be seen, with his side set to face tricky opposition in the 2027 AFCON Qualifiers.
In the draw conducted earlier this month, Harambee Stars will come up against heavyweights South Africa, coupled with ties against Guinea and Eritrea in Group D.
Kenya, who are among the co-hosts of the 2027 event, will qualify automatically, but will use the matches to get ready for a big ride on home soil, when the main competition begins.
This year, Kenya has played two matches; a 1-1 draw with Estonia, and a 3-0 win over Grenada in the FIFA Series held in Rwanda in March.
As for shifting interests during international friendlies, the latest episode marks the second time McCarthy and his charges, have seen fixtures chopped and changed.
In November last year, Harambee Stars saw their friendlies against Madagascar and Comoros revised, with alternanate fixtures against Equatorial Guinea and Senegal slotted in, much to the angst of the technical bench.