Harambee Stars' head coach Engin Firat has asked Kenyan fans to spare him the flak and appreciate his efforts in moulding a successful team.
The Turkish coach made his remarks a day after leading his team to a revitalising 2-1 triumph over the Namibian Brave Warriors at Orlando Stadium in South Africa on Tuesday.
"This is my message to Kenyan fans. If you look at history, Kenya is used to losing here. Nobody seems to be criticising the Harambee Stars coaches who have lost games here in the past. I hope I'll now receive compliments," Firat said.
"It still amazes me how many people are unaware of how many victories we have achieved outside of Kenya. I find it sickening that we do not have true support. People always have complaints, blah blah blah," he continued.
Firat ripped into Kenyan supporters, who constantly criticise him without taking any meaningful action to uplift the team's spirits, adding that they yap too much.
"We would have seen a large number of Kenyans in Uganda if they were sincere about cheering on the team. But how many came there? I saw only a few," he said.
He dismissed the notion that Kenya is going into their match against Cameroon as the underdog and asserted that they are not prepared to play second fiddle to anyone.
"We are happy and focused on the next match. I believe we can pull it off against Cameroon. Anything is possible, the group is tight and I wouldn't be surprised if Namibia won all their two matches against Zimbabwe," he said.
He showered his charges with praise for thumping Namibia's Brave Warriors.
"Considering our circumstances, it was a really strong performance. We prepared well because so many of our players are injured. Except for the final goal, our plans went smoothly," Firat stated.
"Last time we tried to field our gifted players but they proved too weak for this kind of tournament because of the soft nature of the Kenyan Premier League."
Meanwhile, Harambee Stars skipper John Okumu has fired a warning shot to the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon ahead of their Africa Cup of Nations qualifier, telling them to prepare for a vicious battle.
"The win against Namibia attests to our potential in this qualifiers. We have a good team with talented players and I believe we can go far," he said.
"Any of the teams still have an equal chance to advance in the group. We do not fear Cameroon. We are prepared for them," he continued.
After their victory on Tuesday, Kenya now leads Group 'J' with four points, one more than Cameroon, who still have a game to play.
