Harambee Stars 1-1 draw against Egypt in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifier was not a fluke, former midfielder Francis Xavier has stated.
Kenya unexpectedly picked up a point against the Pharaohs and Xavier believes the draw was very much deserved given how the players took on the Egyptians.
“Definitely that [draw] is going to be a great source of motivation going forward. If you look at how our players took on Egypt, they did it bravely and so the result was never a fluke as it was one of the well-fought games in recent times from Harambee Stars,” Xavier told Goal.
The former AFC Leopards midfielder added the absence of Patrick Matasi and Ayub Timbe may not affect the team much during their match against Togo on Monday.
“Players have different qualities and where one is weak another may perform better because he has a different ability to the other player. Their absence is not good but I feel it will not affect how the team will play,” added the retired footballer.
“Francis Kimanzi has the most balanced team so there is nothing to worry much about. Even after the two left the pitch, Kenya went on to score which means the other players were and will be ready for the task again.”
Xavier further praised the attacking approach coach Kimanzi has deployed against Uganda, Mozambique and Egypt before.
“The best way of instilling fear on the opponent is to keep attacking every minute. If you spend a lot of time in the opponent's area you probably deny him the chance to attack you and thus increase one's own chances of winning the game,” he explained.
“I like the attacking approach of the coach. He is aware that if his team sits back, they will invite pressure which may lead to punishable mistakes.
“Harambee Stars should attack as a unit and when they lose the ball they should fall back as a unit.”
The match between Harambee Stars and Togo will kick-off at 7:00 pm in EAT.
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