WANYAMA TO LEAD STARS AGAINST EAGLES

By Japheth Ruto

The mouth-watering clash between the Harambee Stars and Super Eagles of Nigeria is set to be played today at Moi International Sports Centre Kasarani. The match which is a World Cup qualifier will see Celtic midfielder Victor Wanyama handed the captain’s armband in place of the suspended skipper Dennis Oliech.

Wanyama has humbly accepted the challenge to captain Stars and has admitted it was difficult decision. The last game featuring the two teams in Calabar saw the super eagles break Kenyan hearts by scoring a late equalizer to earn a 1-1 draw with the Kenyan national team.

The Scottish young player of the year has stressed that Kenya is a young team in transition but does not fear anyone. Wanyama who shone for his Celtic team in the just concluded season is set to guide the Stars past Nigeria by anchoring the midfield and stringing accurate passes, connecting the defense and the attack.

Harambee Stars Belgian coach Adel Amrouche has said that winning is important at this stage if Kenya are to revive their hopes of qualifying for the finals to be held in Brazil in 2014.

Kenya currently sits at the bottom of group F with two points after four matches. The stars have won none, drawn two and lost one. African champions Nigeria top the group with five points. They are level on points with Malawi while Namibia is third.

The Kenyan trio of Dennis oliech who plays for AC Ajaccio in the French Lique 1 , goalkeeper Arnold Origi and Parma midfielder MacDonald Mariga will miss the much anticipated clash. Oliech who is Kenya’s all-time highest goal scorer will be missed dearly and this leaves stars short of attacking options upfront. Al Nasr striker Kephan Aswani is widely expected to fit into the boots of Dennis. Batoto ba Mungu stopper Duncan Ochieng’ on the other hand will deputize for Arnold Origi.

Nigeria has never lost a single match to Kenya in 11 encounters. The fact that Kenya is playing the match on home soil will be an added advantage. The Stars will capitalize on the huge support of their home fans to ensure they collect 3 points and give them a huge boost in their hopes of moving to the next stage.

Emmanuel Emenike and Victor Moses of Nigeria will miss the match due to injuries. Nigeria has a rich talent though and may cause the Kenyan defence all sorts of problems.

The president of the Republic of Kenya, His Excellency Hon Uhuru Kenyatta, has pledged to award Harambee stars with 3 million shillings if they beat the Super eagles. Nairobi Senator Hon Mike Mbuvi Sonko has also promised to reward the national team an additional 1 million shillings & 200,000 shillings for every goal scored. This comes as great motivation for the team who have to depend on the support of the home crowd to crack the Nigerian defence.

The thriller will be played at 1600hrs local time. The referee of the day is Noumandiez Doue from Ivory Coast and his assistants are Songuifolo Yeo, Jean Claude & 4th official Dennis Dembele. In another group F fixture Namibia is set to host the Malawian team.