Africa-Press – Kenya. Harambee Stars head coach Engin Firat has vowed to field players on merit, saying he will include even those who are unattached as long as they are in perfect form.
In his address to the press on Wednesday, Firat defended his decision to call up enterprising midfielder Antony ‘Teddy’ Akumu who has been without a club for a while now.
“Teddy is more fit than players who are playing in the Kenyan Premier League. It’s quite a miracle because he currently doesn’t have a club. In training, I’m yet to get the feeling Teddy is out of form,” Firat remarked.
Firat said they were experiencing difficulties securing the release of foreign-based players but said the squad boasts sufficient depth to tackle all calibre of opponents.
“I’m not sure who among the players in the provisional squad will be ready for our games. We have some injury concerns and it’s most likely we shall be having a different set of players on the field for the two matches,” Firat stated.
Firat hopes to receive more foreign-based players in camp after Eric ‘Marcelo’ Ouma arrived on Wednesday.
“Marcelo was with us this morning and Joseph Okumu will likely be joining us on Thursday morning.”
He said he intentionally beefed up the goalkeeping department to raise the quality and level of competition.
“All the goalkeepers know this is an open competition and nobody is guaranteed a slot in the starting lineup.
They must all work on their shortcomings, especially in the area of goalkeeping techniques,” Firat said.
He expressed regret that Harambee Stars will be hosting their matches in Malawi, owing to a dearth of quality surfaces in the country.
“All players are burning to play at home in front of our fans. It’s frustrating to travel long distances for a match and play in front of a hostile crowd simply because none of your fans are around to cheer you on.”
He added: “We hope to play the rest of our games at home because the fans would like to watch us in action. It’s always a bonus to play at home in front of our fans and I hope that they will soon get the opportunity to play here and showcase the traction they have gained in their form in the last few months.”
Meanwhile, Harambee Stars striker John Avire believes they can stun the highly-rated Africa Cup of Nations champions Ivory Coast.
“Ivory Coast are a good team but we are not scared of them because we also have quality players who can deliver effectively,” Avire remarked.
Avire is urging fresh members of the squad to display a positive mind and focus on team goals.
“They have earned their place in the team on merit and they have the quality required to contribute towards good results.
“We all have a positive mindset because we achieved impressive results in our last three matches.”
“We can pull off a similar display to win our upcoming qualifiers against Burundi and Ivory Coast.”
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