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Ahead of Harambee Stars' second AFCON 2025 qualifier against Namibia on Tuesday, this is how Engin Firat is likely to set up the team.
The Kenya national football team Harambee Stars will be facing Namibia in their second group J match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers with an eye on reaching the tournament for the first time since 2019.
Kenya will be hoping for a positive result after being held to an underwhelming draw by Zimbabwe last Friday, which will relieve the heavy pressure and burden off Engin Firat’s back.
With the game set to take place in South Africa from 7PM East African time, this is how we see them lining up tonight.
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GK -Byrne Omondi
Byrne Omondi made a surprise but understandable return to the starting line up for the first time since the Russia friendly last October which saw him suffer an unfortunate leg injury.
Now with consistent minutes under his belt for Bandari, Omondi looked the part against Zimbabwe, with his distribution and calming influence a joy to behold.
As Firat’s preferred starting goalkeeper, we expect him to retain his place in goal.
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RB -Amos Nondi
Amos Nondi will step in at right back in the absence of Alphonce Omija who had to return to his club due to a knock he received during their 0-0 draw against Zimbabwe that forced him to be subbed off.early in the game.
Despite being a midfielder, he is the only other option capable of playing in that position, apart from of course, Alwyn Tera, who was also included in the squad this september.
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CB-Joseph Okumu
Joseph Okumu will start on the right side of the defence and captain the side just like he did against Zimbabwe in the absence of Michael Olunga.
CB-Sylvester Owino
The Gor Mahia defender is likely to be given the nod as Okumu’s preferred partner against Zimbabwe, with the only other option being Shariff Majabe of Bandari, but unless something happens to Owino, we expect him to start.
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LB -Eric ‘Marcelo’ Ouma
Although he was subbed off against Zimbabwe, Erick Marcelo Otieno still travelled to South Africa with the team, indicating that he is likely to be fit for the clash. We expect him to get the nod at left back over Abud Omar.
RW - Rooney Onyango
Rooney Onyango has been the go-to right winger since making his debut last October against Russia and will be expected to start against Namibia.
CM- Teddy Akumu
Another mainstay in the side under Engin Firat, Anthony “Teddy” Akumu will be expected to start in central midfield and be the defensive presence.
CM - Richard Odada
Richard Odada has been Akumu’s trusted partner for over a year now and we expect that to remain the case against Namibia.
LW -Austin Odhiambo
Austin Odhiambo did fairly well playing as a left winger against Zimbabwe on the opening day, and showed promise linking up with Marcelo on the left hand side especially in the second half. For relationship purposes as well as the creative spark he injects into the team, he is likely to get the nod against ZImbabwe again.
AM -Duke Abuya
Given the fact that Firat is likely to set up on the counter attack, Duke Abuya is the profile of attacking midfielder in the side that has good off the ball movement and carries the ball dynamically. This makes him a dangerous weapon to have in transitional situations which could make him get the nod over Kenneth Muguna.
CF - John Avire
Against Zimbabwe, Firat opted to start without a striker, explaining that the point of playing both Abuya and Eric Johana as twin false number nines was to try and gain more central access into the box but it never worked.
We predict John Avire, who came on as a substitute, to start this time especially with Michael Olunga unavailable.
Avire can hold the ball up better than Benson Omala and Jonah Ayunga and is very aggressive, which makes him a nightmare for defenders to deal with, and we think he will do a good job creating space for Abuya to run in behind.
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