Harambee Stars new coach Paul Put [Photo/The Star]
Following the appointment of the new Harambee Stars coach Paul Put comes a lot of scrutiny as he had been banned in 2008 for match-fixing.
The former coach for Belgian club Lierse received a three-year ban by the Royal Belgian Football Association for taking part in the Ye Zheyun match-fixing scandal.
Put however continues to deny the allegations against him and has sought to shed light on the incident that took place several years ago.
“The whole of Belgian football was sick. I was threatened by the mafia, my children were threatened, the mafia threatened me with weapons and things like that so it’s not nice to talk about these things but this is the reality.
“I was forced into it. But fixing is a big word. At that time Belgian football was in a bad way. There was no hope, no money. It’s not that I was involved in match-fixing, not at all, but it’s been portrayed like that in the media,” Put said as reported by The Star.
Put added that he was made a scapegoat and that during his time he was forced to answer to those above him and the players as well.
He has expressed his confidence in his appointment and is looking to end Kenya’s 13 year absence from the global stage.