Harambee Stars head coach, Stanley Okumbi, has called on the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) and the Kenyan Premier League to work together in giving the national team ample time to prepare for international matches.
Okumbi saluted his players for giving a good shift despite most featuring for their domestic clubs only hours before in the encounter Malawi were using to prepare for their 2018 Africa Home Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifier away to Madagascar on Saturday (April 22).
To ward off a similar scenario in the future, Okumbi called on his employers- FKF and the top-flight league body to work together in avoiding situations that would lead to player burn out he blamed for Stars inability to win the game.
“It is welcome because if you look at my team, some players, especially those from AFC Leopards had just arrived from Mombasa while we had others from Posta Rangers and Kariobangi Sharks who had just played for their teams the day before.
“Going forward we have to plan well and early. The federation and SPLneed to plan early and well for the good of the national team. Perhaps we should have had some league matches postponed to allow players come to camp in the best condition,” Okumbi suggested.
Assessing the game, he admitted that Kenya were stronger in the first half and his players came to life in the second but could not force an away win since they could not break down the physical Stars.
“I’m very proud and happy with the performance and mentality of my players. We changed a few things tactically in the second half and we managed to keep much of the ball while also creating a number of chances but in the end I think 0-0 is a fair result for both sides and for us it is good because we are just building the team,” he added.