•Kenya will play the Swallows on June 7 before flexing muscles with the Elephants on June 11 at the Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe.
•Only three players, skipper Michael Olunga, midfielder Richard Odada, and defender Daniel Anyembe have yet to show up
Image: FILE
Harambee Stars' head coach Engin Firat is counting on their week-long training camp to register impressive results in the upcoming 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Burundi and Ivory Coast.
The men's national team leave for Malawi on Sunday, exactly a week before their two crunch ties in the Southeastern African nation.
Kenya will play the Swallows on June 7 before flexing muscles with the Elephants on June 11 at the Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe.
"Training has been good although we haven't had enough time to train together. What's encouraging is that we managed to get a good number of our players in camp," Firat remarked.
"We've achieved a lot in training and I believe we still have some polishing to do in the remaining days before the big day," he added.
Only three players, skipper Michael Olunga, midfielder Richard Odada, and defender Daniel Anyembe have yet to show up.
Coach Firat assured the nation that the trio would link up with the rest of the squad in Lilongwe, Malawi despite growing speculations of an alleged fallout between Olunga and the Football Kenya Federation (FKF).
The Turkish gaffer has been honing the skills of his charges since Tuesday last week at the Police Sacco Stadium in Nairobi.
Firat welcomed two new additions to the camp on Wednesday who now have a chance to prove their mettle for the first time in national colours.
Tobias Knost, who features for German lower-tier side SV Verl linked up with the team alongside hard-tackling defensive midfielder John Ochieng, who features for Zanaco in Zambia.
Seasoned players Duke Abuya and Elvis Rupia, who are both based in Tanzania, are also in the camp, bolstering the talent-laden squad that also boasts Portugal-based Johnstone Omurwa, Oman-based Alphonse Omija and Armenia-based Amos Nondi.
Bradford City’s Adam Wilson and Perth Glory forward Bruce Kamau checked into camp last week. Ayub Timbe, based in Azerbaijan, is expected to link up with the team before they travel to Malawi.
The Stars are third in Group F behind Ivory Coast and Gabon. Other nations in the group of death include continental minnows Seychelles whom Kenya thrashed 5-0 in their last tie in Abidjan and Gambia who have since acquired the services of immediate former Gor Mahia head coach Johnathan McKinstry.
Only the top team in the group will qualify for the 48-team World Cup, which will be played across 16 cities in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Four of the best runners-up from the nine groups will have a chance in a playoff that will determine CAF’s representative in the Inter-confederation playoffs involving six teams, which will decide the last two Fifa World Cup berths.