NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 19- Carrying a heavy 7-0 deficit from the first leg, the Harambee Stars under-17 team will only be playing for pride when they host Cameroon in the return leg of the 2017 African Nations Cup qualifier on Saturday at the Kasarani Stadium.
Head coach Andres Spier admits it will be a mountainous task fighting to claw back the deficit and they will only be seeking to win the return tie at home to boost their confidence.
“It is not possible to overturn that result, to be honest. But we want to play good football infront of our fans and give Cameroon a challenge. We know now it will be very difficult but what we can do is show that we are talented,” the German coach who is also the Football Kenya Federation technical director told Capital Sport after the team’s final training session at the match venue on Friday morning.
He added that the difference between them and Cameroon in the first leg went down to experience and the level of preparedness.
“We lost comprehensively in the first leg and it was a difference of preparation. We met a team which has played more matches and training sessions together while we had two months in preparation with a new team but despite that, we have seen a big development in the last few days,” the tactician added.
The German hopes the team stays together and plays more friendly matches, even as he plans to transit some of them in the under-20 team.
“We have to intensify the scouting to make sure we find the best players for the national team from every corner of the country. We have to start competitions for this age because it is difficult if they don’t have competition. We need to have consistency and give them more exposure and they shall become better,” he added.
Cameroon jetted into the country on Thursday evening and will have a training session at the match venue on Friday evening.