Benni McCarthy on How CHAN 2024 Will Prepare Harambee Stars for AFCON 2027

Benni McCarthy believes that the 2024 African Nations Championship (CHAN) is the best test for Harambee Stars ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.

Kenya will co-host both events alongside Uganda and Tanzania, and pressure is on Harambee Stars to deliver, but for Benni McCarthy, CHAN is a platform for them to learn ahead of AFCON.

Harambee Stars last qualified for AFCON in 2019, and making it to the 2027 event and being co-hosts is a huge milestone, with Benni McCarthy backing them to make a mark, especially after CHAN.

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In CHAN, Harambee Stars have been pooled alongside DR Congo, Angola, Zambia and Morocco, and Benni McCarthy remains defiant about Harambee Stars’ abilities.

The former Manchester United attacking coach noted that having locally based players in the tournament is beneficial to the country and the national team.

His prayer is that once CHAN is over, the team will have become lethal, and those playing for international clubs will have to put in extra work to be noticed by Benni McCarthy.

“The experience I want out of this is that you have a team so well groomed, they end up leaving international players out of the senior team because of how well they have done and how competitive the locals have become,” Benni McCarthy told CAF Online.

“This will only be of massive benefit to the national team, the players themselves and the country. I hope that this team becomes so formidable that it will become difficult to integrate the international players. This is the best test for them.”

The South African native pointed out that despite being the ‘group of death’, he remains defiant that Harambee Stars can make history.

However, Benni McCarthy is remaining open-minded as he noted that if things do not go as expected, Harambee Stars will have gotten the valuable lessons ahead of AFCON.

“When you are champions, that is success. Anything else, that’s progress, especially in a short space of time. We need to see how far the players have come and how well they have done,” Benni McCarthy added.

“So far, they have pushed themselves to a decent standard where we expect bigger and better things. But the ultimate success is to win CHAN.”

Benni McCarthy said they had tried to strike a balance by selecting players from across the leagues. He acknowledged that the situation had not been ideal, particularly towards the end of the season when several venues were closed due to CHAN preparations.

Benni McCarthy revealed that it limited the number of local matches they were able to watch. However, he noted that the matches he did observe, along with the local training camps held earlier, had given him a clear picture of which players to select.

“I think the Kenyan league is growing, and we are yet to see the best of it. There is more space for growth and improvement, but I am really impressed with the quality and competition in the league,” Benni McCarthy pointed out.

Benni McCarthy views the 2024 CHAN tournament as a crucial stepping stone for Harambee Stars on their journey to the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.

While the ultimate goal is to win CHAN, he emphasises that the experience, growth, and competitiveness gained, especially among locally based players, will be invaluable in building a formidable national team capable of making history on home soil.