Ryan Ogam Wonderstrike Sinks 10-Man Burundi to Hand Harambee Stars Vital Win Ahead of Ivory Coast Tie

Ryan Ogam was the hero for Harambee Stars once again, his belter of a left-footed strike off the bench proving enough to hand Benni McCarthy’s charges all three points in their penultimate 2026 World Cup qualifier against Burundi in Bujumbura on Thursday afternoon.

It was a tense, chaotic start for Kenya. Just two minutes in, goalkeeper Brian Bwire had to be stretchered off after suffering a nasty head injury when Burundi forward Bonfils-Caleb Bimenyimana’s boot clattered against his face — a challenge that earned the striker a straight red card. 

Byrne Omondi came on to replace Bwire in goal, marking an unexpected early entrance.

But despite the man advantage, Kenya struggled to impose themselves for large spells of the first half. 

 Adam Wilson came closest to breaking the deadlock, forcing Jonathan Nahimana into a fine save after a sharp counterattack engineered by Olunga’s hold-up play.

At halftime, McCarthy decided to act. Vincent Harper, who was on a yellow card, made way for Timothy Ouma as the South African tactician sought more spark and fluidity. The change paid off almost instantly. 

Ouma’s energy and drive lifted Kenya’s tempo, and within minutes of the restart, William Lenkupae and Austin Odhiambo began combining with intent down the flanks, testing Burundi’s compact defense.

The Harambee Stars finally found their rhythm, and Nahimana was forced into a string of saves to keep his side in the game — first from Ouma’s curling effort and later from Olunga’s close-range attempt. 

Still, McCarthy wasn’t fully satisfied. In the 65th minute, he sent on Ryan Ogam and Job Ochieng for Odhiambo and Duke Abuya, pushing Lenkupae deeper to control the game’s flow.

After neat interplay between Ouma and Olunga on the edge of the box, the Wolfsberger AC striker collected the ball, shifted it onto his left foot, and unleashed a rocket from distance that flew past Nahimana into the top corner. 

McCarthy then introduced Boniface Muchiri and Marvin Nabwire for Olunga and Wilson to preserve the lead, but Burundi refused to roll over. 

In the 87th minute, Jean Claude Girumugisha won a free kick on the edge of the area, but Marco Weymans’s attempt was comfortably gathered by Omondi. Moments later, the substitute keeper pulled off a superb stop to deny Abedi Bigirimana’s header in stoppage time, sealing Kenya’s hard-earned victory.

The result means Kenya now sit third in Group F with 12 points, trailing leaders Ivory Coast and Gabon. Though World Cup qualification is no longer mathematically possible, the win offers a major psychological lift ahead of their final qualifier in Abidjan on Monday.