Angola’s coach, Pedro Gonçalves, criticised the Harambee Stars players after their thrilling 1-1 draw at Kasarani in the CHAN 2024. Angola coach Pedro Gonçalves was not happy with some of Harambee Stars’ tactics. Angola’s hopes of securing their first CHAN 2024 win were dashed by a frustrating draw, despite dominating possession after the hosts were reduced to 10 men. The Palancas Negras suffered a 2-0 defeat to Morocco in their opening Group A match and entered Thursday’s game determined to secure all three points to strengthen their chances of advancing to the quarter-finals. How did Harambee Stars hold Angola? Harambee Stars coach Benni McCarthy had warned about Angola’s possession-heavy style in his pre-match press conference, and it was evident from the very first minute. Cheered on by tens of thousands of fans, the hosts fell behind in the 7th minute, and it seemed like a long night awaited them. However, they quickly responded.
Austin Odhiambo was fouled inside the box, and after a brief VAR review, Kenya was awarded a penalty. He converted it, sparking joy among the crowd. However, in the 21st minute, Kenya was reduced to 10 men when Marvin Nabwire was sent off. After fouling an opposition player, he received a yellow card, which was later upgraded to a red following a VAR review. For the final 70 minutes, McCarthy’s team defended valiantly to secure a crucial point. Angola thought they had scored a last-minute winner, but VAR ruled it out for offside. Kenya now leads the group with four points after four games and will face Morocco at the same venue on Sunday. What did Angola coach say about Kenya? Angola must now defeat Zambia and DR Congo in their final two matches to have a chance of progressing to the quarter-finals.
Their coach, Pedro Gonçalves, was not pleased with the tactics employed by the Harambee Stars players during the game. “You will say Kenya defended a lot, but one thing I would like to say is they were wasting time, something that rules, unfortunately, still allow and you saw when the player [Marvin Nabwire] got a red card, the goalkeeper [Byrne Omondi] just went down,” Angola coach Pedro Gonçalves said reporters after the game. “We were brave, we played as a team, we tried everything.” Byrne Omondi produced an impressive performance for Harambee Stars in goal. The atmosphere was very tough, as you know Kenya was playing at home. Unfortunately, we didn’t win the match, but we will keep working so that we can win the next one,” Angolan midfielder Gilberto said. What next for Kenya and Angola? Harambee Stars will face Morocco on August 10 and then have a full week to prepare for their match against Zambia on August 17. Angola will play Zambia on Sunday, and then conclude their group with a clash against DR Congo on August 14. The southern African side desperately need a win in their final two matches
By Edwin Kiplagat
