Bafana Bafana legend Benni McCarthy will take charge of his first match as Kenya national team coach on Thursday when the East African nation face The Gambia.
The Harambee Stars are looking to get their 2026 World Cup qualifiers on track and must win against the Scorpions and then Gabon at home three days later to revive their chances.
McCarthy and his team arrived in Abidjan, Ivory Coast on Wednesday ahead of the fixture which will be played at Alassane Ouattara Stadium, one of the venues for AFCON 2023, as The Gambia do not have an approved stadium at home.
How can you watch Benni’s first match?
Kenya head into the qualifiers fourth in their qualifying group with five points from four matches, after one win and a draw, with Ivory Coast ahead with 10 points followed by Gabon who have nine and Burundi on seven.
McCarthy has vowed to ensure Kenya seal a place at the 2026 World Cup and to do that, there are no two ways out other than beating The Gambia and Gabon for six points that would greatly boost their chances.
The Harambee Stars and The Gambia match is among fixtures that will be broadcast live on SuperSport TV and South African fans looking to see how one of Mzansi’s favourites starts his international campaign can tune into SuperSport TV on Thursday March 20 from 21:00.
Harambee Stars full of foreign-based stars
The match will be live on SuperSport PSL and Africa 1 channels, while GOtv customers can catch Harambee Stars in action on GO Africa 1.
McCarthy named a strong squad made up of mostly foreign-based players led by captain Michael Olunga, who plays for Qatar giants Al Duhail, and was a subject of interest from Kaizer Chiefs in the off-season.
Others are players who PSL fans will be familiar with such as Anthony Akumu, a former Kaizer Chiefs midfielder, Richards Bay goalkeeper Ian Otieno, his Polokwane City counterpart Brian Bwire, as well as Stellenbosch FC defender Brian Onyango.
