After two straight defeats to Cameroon, Harambee Stars head coach Engin Firat has acknowledged it will be difficult to qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
Kenya lost 4-1 in Douala on Friday and 1-0 in Kampala, Uganda, on Monday to leave third in Group J with four points from four matches.
The Indomitable Lions are top of the group with 10 points, two ahead of Zimbabwe while pointless Namibia are bottom.
Only the top two teams from each pool will feature in the continental tournament.
Firat underlined how important it is for his charges to win their remaining games against Namibia and Zimbabwe next month.
“Our next two games must be victories. We are at a loss for what more to do. We cannot take anything for granted because this group is tough,” Firat remarked.
“As I indicated before, this group would go right down to the wire, so we did not expect Namibia to lose every game. It has come as a bit of a surprise.”
Firat admitted that the results against Cameroon were disheartening, especially considering Kenya’s strong performance in the second leg.
“The feeling can be summed up in one word: disappointing. We wanted to prove that we could play football after the first leg and I believe we had more than enough opportunities today. However, you get no points for playing good football. The players are disappointed that we did not win the game despite their best efforts,” he said.
Zimbabwe beat Namibia twice in a row, boosting the Warriors’ chances of making it to Morocco.
“Our plan was not to come out without points against Cameroon. We did not also expect Namibia to lose three matches considering that they were at the AFCON earlier in the year. It complicated the group further,” added Firat.
Meanwhile, former Harambee Stars head coach Jacob ‘Ghost’ Mulee is among those who criticised Firat’s tactical approach.
“Firat ought to take the criticism. Our team is causing us concern. Furthermore, I believe I already stated that I was not impressed with his strategies following our goalless draw against Zimbabwe. It’s not my work.”
“However, as a former coach and
Kenyan, I am just curious as to why,
out of the three strikers he had on
the bench, he chose not to use any of
them. And I believed that might have
had an impact,” Mulee remarked.