Kenya’s highest FIFA ranking was achieved in 1998 when the team was ranked as high as the 68th position on the standings.
The national team had gained a reputation of winning international matches and was a force to reckon with in the region as well.
They achieved that feat under the stewardship of former reliable tactician Mohammed Kheri who was responsible for most of the team’s fortunes at the time.
During his period, Kenya managed to play to a 1-1 draw with the then African giants Nigeria who were on a world-conquering mission.
Kenya was building a reputation of not only being a strong side in the region but to the rest of the continent as well.
The team accumulated a lot of FIFA ranking points and were it not for slip-ups and terrible mistakes, stars would have graced at least four editions of the Africa Cup of Nations between 1999 and 2010.
The boys only managed to find a way through to the finals in 2003 but performed dismally partly due to the overreliance on the young Dennis Oliech who was turning out for Mathare United and was just a teenager.
With the ongoing long-term project and medium-term plans for the national team, perhaps we will see a revolution and a repetition of the same but this time to better the record of 68 that was at one time replicated when Francis Kimanzi was in charge in 2008.
Only Francis Kimanzi has come close to beating the record but his Stars side of 2008 only equalled the record but was sadly dismissed before he could rally his troops even further.
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