NAIROBI, Kenya, January 6, 2025 – Harambee Stars stand-in coach Francis Kimanzi has praised his players for their hunger to perform and stake their claim in the team.
Kimanzi says the motivation within the squad is one he has never seen before.
“They are very excited…they are very motivated. They want to prove themselves. It is like they know they are a product of hard work. You know, to be selected from among 40 players, it means you were very convincing and proved you deserve to be here…and they are continuing to prove they deserve to be here,” the gaffer said.
High morale notwithstanding, the tactician believes they are still levels for the players to scale.
On his to-do list is the need to improve the side’s game management, especially when they are leading.
“We know they need to improve a lot on their emotional excitement within the game when they are leading. I believe in the next match they are also capable of scoring so it is only a matter of how do we manage the game when we score,” he said.
Kimanzi was speaking on Sunday, ahead of Tuesday’s Mapinduzi Cup encounter against Tanzania at the Gombani Stadium in Zanzibar.
The match follows their 1-1 draw against Burkina Faso in the opener on Saturday night.
James Kinyanjui gave Stars the lead, late in the first half, before the Burkinabe levelled at the death through Abubakar Traore’s header.
Reflecting back on the duel, Kimanzi couldn’t be prouder of the team, which consisted of a number of debutants.
“For the show that they gave us yesterday was very impressive because it is the first match they have hit with some competition…their intensity in the game against a very strong and well-oiled side…we are very positive about them and we are encouraging them more,” the longstanding tactician said.
He added: “It is a good performance in the sense that where we are coming from, we are just a quickly assembled side. We had a number of players chasing their international debuts and the period within which we had to bring these players was quite short. Up to now we are still working, encouraging to be comfortable and work together as a unit.”
The Kilimanjaro Stars will present a different kind of test for the Kenyans but nonetheless, Kimanzi remains bullish about his boys.
The Tanzanians will be out for victory after losing 1-0 to Zanzibar in their opener on Friday.
