A poor display by Kenya’s Harambee stars saw a two-one defeat against Gabon in the World Cup qualifier yesterday.
Harambee Stars performed well in the first half and they were leading at halftime courtesy of Masoud Juma’s goal but however they could not replicate the good form in the second half.
In the fourth minute of the game, the Stars suffered an early scare in the game after Patrick Matasi looked to have suffered a serious injury. He was however treated and allowed back to the game.
The home side mounted their first attack when their team captain Michael Olunga engineered an ambitious counterattack in the 34th minute. The Al Dugail SC striker attempted Gabon’s goalkeeper but the shot flew wide.
They scored when Juma managed to collect a pass from Amos Nondi and slotted in the net in the 40th minute.
As the second half started, Gabon almost claimed an equalizer, but Anthony Oyono could not make it 1-1 as Johnstone Omurwa managed to clear his low cross in the 51st minute.
Matasi finally conceded a goal when Denis Bounga found the back of the net, and that was a deserved equalizer for the home side, who had been quite ambitious since the second half began.
The Central Africans scored late in the second half to claim a critical 2-1 win. Kanga was the scorer of the third goal of the match that broke Kenya’s hearts in Franceville.
Harambee Stars will play Seychelles in the next qualifier that is set to be hosted in Ivory Coast.
