The local federation is in the market for a new coach following the exit of Engin Firat, who had overseen the team for close to three years. Firat quit after he failed to guide Harambee Stars to the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Morocco.
Kenya are currently under interim coach Francis Kimanzi, who is being assisted by Zedekiah ‘Zico’ Otieno and John Kamau. Kimanzi was handed the role to prepare the team for the invitational 2025 Mapinduzi Cup tournament currently going on in Zanzibar.
Flashscore revealed at the end of last year that the FKF had reached out to former Bafana Bafana striker McCarthy, who had agreed to take up the role and will arrive with one assistant ahead of the 2024 Africa Nations Championships (CHAN) tournament set to be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
A source within FKF, who did not want to be named, confirmed McCarthy - who got 79 appearances for the South Africa national team and scored 31 goals - will arrive in the East African nation for the unveiling ceremony before January 10th.
“The next Harambee Stars coach is going to be Benni McCarthy, unless anything changes. FKF and his agent are already working on the contract and it should be finalised soon because the target is to unveil him, latest January 10, 2025,” the FKF source, who did not want to be named, told Flashscore.
“He (McCarthy) has already accepted the offer on the table and he will be allowed to come in with one assistant, while Kenya will give him one assistant to work with. It is obvious that Kimanzi was handed the role on an interim basis, so he will pave the way for McCarthy to take charge.
“What I understand is that McCarthy will be paid around Ks2.2 million, and all negotiations are already complete, only the contract is being sorted out before he arrives to replace Engin Firat in a permanent role.”
McCarthy has knowledge of African football
According to Onsika, who played for Harambee Stars in the late 80s and 90s, the appointment of McCarthy could be the turning point of Kenyan football.
“When I read the news that FKF were courting McCarthy for the role on a permanent basis, I didn’t think twice, I said to myself we need him like yesterday, he has the know-how about African football and can be the best man to replace Engin (Firat),” Onsika told Flashscore.
“He (McCarthy) is a man on demand because of what he has achieved before, from his playing career and now as a coach. It is prudent that FKF must move with speed to tie him down or else he will take another route, he may get another offer and snub Kenya.”
Onsika continued: “Recently he was with Man United and you saw how he shaped their strikers. You could see his hand on how Man United strikers did their job, he was a good striker too (during his playing days) and coming to Kenya, he will be able to help more players grow and develop their skills. He will have the chance to work with Michael Olunga and shape him even more.”
Onsika further called on FKF to make sure that a Kenyan coach is retained in the technical bench to be led by McCarthy saying this will give confidence to the local coaches to trust in themselves.
“Since they have gone for McCarthy I don’t have any issue with that but we must balance the technical bench, we should not kick out Kenyan coaches, if McCarthy is coming, he should have at least one or two coaches from the country,” explained Onsika.
“By doing so, FKF will have shown trust to the local coaches and lifted their morale. Like Firat, he had at least four coaches if you include the goalkeeper trainer, and that is what should happen.
Let us not chase away the local coaches when we hire foreigners, they need to be there to learn a thing or two.”
He added: “The earlier FKF constitutes a permanent bench for the national team the better, we have 2024 CHAN coming up (to be played in 2025) and the 2027 AFCON and also we are in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. We need to get started, we need to have everything in place as quickly as possible and give the coaches hired a free hand to do their jobs.”
McCarthy was most recently a first-team coach at Manchester United and previously worked as head coach of South African Premier Division team AmaZulu. A former forward, he is the South Africa national team’s all-time top scorer and the only South African to have won the UEFA Champions League, doing so with Porto in 2003-04.
Kimanzi elated after Kenya defeat Tanzania
Kimanzi sang the praises of his players for playing according to instructions during their 2-0 win against Tanzania in their second match of the 2025 Mapinduzi Cup at Gombani Stadium in Zanzibar on Tuesday.
After a goalless first half, the game took a decisive turn in the second half. Boniface Muchiri broke the deadlock in the 55th minute, capitalizing on sustained pressure from the Kenyan side. The second goal came in the 67th minute when youngster Ryan Ogam netted his first goal for the senior national team, sealing the victory.
“A good game, a good fight, a good show also from the players, so I think it is a very sweet win for the technical bench, the medical staff that also helped a lot to help the players recover very quickly after the first game,” said Kimanzi after the game.
“I think it is a win for the team, for the fans and also for the technical bench because at least the players worked for us and they tried to give us what we gave them, they followed the guidelines that we gave them, they kept the composure, which is very good, and also showed some character throughout the 90 minutes.”
Kenya, who are taking part as a guest nation in the invitational tournament, are drawn alongside Burkina Faso, Tanzania and Zanzibar. They kicked off their campaign with a 1-1 draw against the Stallions.
On facing Zanzibar in the final group fixture, Kimanzi said: “That will be the toughest battle of all because we will be coming up against the hosts, they also have four points, we have four points but the difference only lies in the goals scored, but I think we are growing mentally.
“We are developing our character better after every match, the environment will also be different and that I know will really excite our players, and I am looking forward to that particular one because I know we will give it a fight.”
Kimanzi further confirmed his intentions to rotate the squad for the Zanzibar fixture. “We have to rotate the squad because this is a select team and every player is ready and sometimes you have to give them a test run, and also to try to avoid injuries because this is an artificial pitch.”
Football Kenya Federation (FKF) President Hussein Mohammed took to his social media pages to congratulate the team for the deserved win.
“Congratulations to Kenya on the 2-0 win over Kilimanjaro Stars in the Mapinduzi Cup! A great response from the team, showing they have what it takes to go all the way,” Mohammed wrote.
“This tournament is a key part of our preparations for CHAN, and performances like this build the confidence needed for success. Well done, The Harambee Stars!”
Kenya now sit atop the group with four points, level with Burkina Faso but leading on goal difference. The team will shift focus to their next match against hosts Zanzibar on Friday, January 10, 2025. The game is set to kick off at 19:00 at the Gombani Stadium.
Kenya are using the tournament as part of their preparations for the 2024 CHAN they will co-host alongside Uganda and Tanzania.
