Afcon 2021 Qualifiers: Togo's preparation can counter home advantage – Kenya's Omollo

Harambee Stars midfielder Johanna Omollo has warned his teammates not to relax because of playing at home against Togo in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Monday.

The Sparrowhawks will play against the Harambee Stars in their second Group G match after losing the opener 1-0 at home against Comoros. On the other hand, Kenya secured a 1-1 draw against Egypt in their first match in Alexandria.

Johanna, who features for Belgian club Cercle Brugge, insists modern football has really changed and it does not matter whether a team is playing at home or away.

“Now modern football is different you can be home or away and it doesn’t matter, what matters most is how you are prepared for the match and whether you are ready to get a good result,” Omollo told Goal.

“For example, the same Togo we are playing against were at home but still lost 1-0 to Comoros. No one was expecting such a result because Togo were playing at home and were the favourites but it was not the case.

“In football nowadays, all that matters is how well you are prepared, how ready you are to take on your opponent, how good are your players and not just playing at home.”

Omollo has also welcomed the 1-1 draw against Egypt in Alexandria saying it was a perfect result for the team as it gives them the edge of doing well in the campaign.

“It was very important to get a draw away against [Egypt], it was an away match and coming back with a point was amazing because it puts us a little bit in an advantage because we are now playing home against Togo,” Omollo continued.

“We are focused to win the game against [Togo] and well prepared and the team has really improved, they are focused and confident when playing the ball and everybody is prepared and ready to play for the Kenyan shirt.”

Kenya and Togo have only met five times in history, twice in Kenya, once in a neutral venue and twice in Togo.

The last time Harambee Stars played against Togo in Nairobi was on February 29, 2012, when they managed to secure a 2-1 win in an Afcon qualifying match.

Surprisingly, the winning team was under current coach Kimanzi but were beaten 1-0 in the return leg played in Lome. In other matches pitting the two sides, Kenya drew 1-1 with Togo in 1972 at home but also managed a huge 3-0 win against the same side in 2002, also at home.