Ex-Harambee Stars Coach Slams Kenyans Over 'Unfair' Benni McCarthy Criticism

Amid criticism directed at Harambee Stars boss Benni McCarthy after his team failed to beat lowly Estonia, the South African coach has received backing.

McCarthy watched his team lose 5-4 on post-match penalties after a 1-1 draw on Friday but he expressed satisfaction at how his team played, especially in the second half, with hope that they will now beat Grenada on Monday.

However, some still blamed the tactician for his team’s loss but former Harambee Stars coach Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno has fired back at McCarthy’s detractors as ignorant.

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“The coach has his target which is to have a good team at the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations. So this for him is like pre-season,” Otieno said on Radio 47.

“In a pre-season, every friendly match has an objective. You could want different combinations or to try new system in the game so he is the one who knows what he is doing.”

Otieno, who coached Harambee Stas between 2010 and 2011, says McCarthy’s aim was not to beat Estonia but to gauge his team as he builds towards the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.

“So you as fans want to watch the game and comment but the match has two things. Match observation and game analysis and all these things, only the coach can do because it is part of our job,” he added.

“When doing game observation for those who have studied coaching, there are the five Ws (what) and when doing game analysis (why). This helps the coach to make informed decisions to come up with training sessions and have a certain game plan in a match.

“So don’t be quick to criticise when you are not using the right mechanisms to look at a match when watching the game.”

The ex-Gor Mahia and Sony Sugar coach is delighted with what he saw from Kenya against Estonia and feels McCarthy would have picked vital lessons to build on towards next year’s continental tournament.

“As a fan I was happy with the game. We need to know which gameplan the coach had because it is pre-season which is not about winning but to get us ready. He is looking to see if his team will be ready when he plays his first game at the Cup of Nations,” said the former KCB and Sofapaka coach.

“They cannot be ready now when the tournament will be played in a year’s time so we are always unfair on coaches.”

McCarthy will be looking to learn more from his team in their second FIFA Series match against Grenada on Monday.