Harambee Stars held at home by Eritrea in 2027 Afcon qualifier

By  Cecil Odongo

Reporter

Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

• Kenya fell behind in the 37th minute when Eritrea's Nahom Girmai, who fired home past goalkeeper Bryne Omondi.
• Eritrea held on to their slim advantage until Ryan Ogam struck in the 87th minute to salvaged for Harambee Stars.

Harambee Stars came from behind to draw 1-1 with lowly ranked Eritrea in a 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers Group ‘D’ match at Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi on Saturday.

Thousands of fans filled up the match venue to cheer their beloved team that had endured a difficult week underlined by a players’ strike over allowances.

However, Kenya fell behind in the 37th minute after Manzur Okwaro was dispossessed just outside the box by Eritrean forward Ali Suleiman before laying the ball to Nahom Girmai, who fired home past goalkeeper Bryne Omondi.

The visiting team held on to their slim advantage until Ryan Ogam struck in the 87th minute to salvage a point for Harambee Stars. The former Tusker man tapped home substitute Ben Stanley Omondi’s low cross from the right flank.

The result extended Kenya’s long wait for a win over Eritrea, with the last victory coming in a 3-2 result during the 2003 Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup tournament.

Kenya had trained only on Friday ahead of the match, while Eritrea had been in the country since Tuesday and held intensive sessions at Police Sacco Stadium.

Harambee Stars players boycotted training over unpaid allowances, with some of the players claiming they had gone for as many as five matches without receiving their dues.

The players were also unhappy with the Sh62,000 allowance paid to them, saying it was less than they had expected.

On the field of play, Kenya started strongly, with Eritrea barely threatening in the opening exchanges.

In the second minute, Real Sociedad striker Job Ochieng’ received a pass on the right from Aboud Omar, but his dangerous cross was gathered by Eritrea goalkeeper Yonathan Abiel.

Two minutes later, Hanith Wesonga’s bicycle kick from inside a crowded Eritrea box went wide.

Then in the 9th minute, Ogam came close in after finding himself one-on-one with Abiel, but the goalkeeper punched his effort away for an abortive corner.

Harambee Stars continued to dominate possession and territory, but coach Benni McCarthy’s charges struggled to find a way through a disciplined Eritrean defence.

Eritrea gradually grew into the game and occasionally threatened down the left whenever Aboud Omar pushed forward.

The visitors took the lead in the 37th minute when Okwaro carelessly lost possession outside the box to Suleiman who set up Girmai for the opening goal.

Kenya continued to camp around the Eritrean territory, but the visitors defended resolutely to preserve their one goal cushion.

McCarthy made his first change in the 64th minute, replacing the lively Ochieng’ with Gor Mahia forward Ben Stanley Omondi.

The introduction of Mohamed Bajaber seven minutes later brought life to the home team’s attack. Amos Wanjala and Shariff Sirengo were also introduced as McCarthy sought to turn the game around.

In the 85th minute, Abuya had a golden opportunity to level the match but his effort went straight into the hands of Abiel.

Kenya finally found the breakthrough two minutes later when Ogam tapped in a well-delivered low cross from Omondi to spare the home team the blushes.

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