Harambee Stars head coach Engin Firat was livid after his charges shared the spoils with Burundi to water down their 2026 World Cup qualification campaign.
Kenya squandered a second-half lead after Viborg FC centre-back David Anyembe committed a howler in the dying minutes of the hotly-contested Group ‘F’ thriller at the Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe Malawi.
“We had a perfect chance to go second in the standings and this could have lessened the pressure on us as we prepare for our next match against Cote d’Ivoire. But we blew it all up with a silly mistake,” Firat said. “It’s important to avoid such mistakes at this level of the game. There must have been a communication breakdown between Matasi and Anyembe.”
The Turkish gaffer believes all is not lost and has urged his charges to step up on the gas peddle against Cote d’Ivoire on June 11.
“It’s still too early to throw in the towel and we have a chance to bounce back strongly in our next match on Tuesday,” Firat remarked.
Burundi head coach Ettiene Ndayiragije was elated to have picked a point against their more fancied East African rivals.
“We played well and I’m confident we have improved well enough to collect more points from our remaining matches.
Second-half substitute Duke Abuya netted on the second bite of the cherry in the 72nd minute after Austin Odhiambo’s initial effort bounced off the stretched limb of a determined Burundian defender.
Sudi Abdalla capitalised on Kenya’s grave defensive mishap to draw the Swallows level in the 82nd minute after dispossessing Anyembe, who unsuccessfully attempted to shield the ball from him in the danger zone.
The equaliser sparked the game into life with both teams conducting incessant incursions into each other’s territory in a vicious hunt for goals.
In a final roll of the dice, Firat introduced Kenyan Premier League’s leading Golden Boot contender Benson Omalla the sharpen the Kenyan onslaught.
The outcome leaves Kenya third in the group with four points from three matches while Burundi are fourth with four points.
Cote d’Ivoire tops the group with six points despite having a game in hand. Gabon are second with six points but with an inferior goal advantage.
Gambia and Seychelles are fifth and sixth respectively after failing to secure points from two matches apiece.
