CHAN 2024: Fans react to Harambee Stars' debut victory over DR Congo
Reading Time: 4min | Mon. 04.08.25. | 18:12
Kenyans took to various media platforms and also directly talked to Mozzart Sport to express their thoughts on the match
Kenyans were over the moon after their national men's football team, Harambee Stars, began their 2024 African Nations Championship (CHAN) campaign with a win over the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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The long-awaited CHAN, which is being co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, is already underway with Harambee Stars hosting DR Congo for the first match on Kenyan soil.
In what was a highly contested match that had Kenya survive an early scare when the referee, upon Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review, cancelled what seemed to be a DRC opener.
Gor Mahia's mercurial midfielder, Austin Odhiambo, scored in the second minute of first-half added time, which was all that separated the two teams.
The win was so significant to Kenya, who are in the group of death, as it came over an opposition who are not only regulars in the tournament but have also won the tournament twice, a joint record.
Kenyans took to various media platforms and also directly talked to Mozzart Sport to express their thoughts on the match led by President William Ruto through his social media accounts.
“We salute Harambee Stars for an outstanding and entertaining display of talent. Your victory today against the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the beginning of what promises to be a historic chapter in Kenyan football.
Thank you, Austin Odhiambo, for sealing the win. We are living up to the rallying cry Stars Must Win. We are behind you all the way,” said the Head of State.
For Kelvin Kiplimo, he was taken aback by Kenya's performance after initially not giving them a chance over their opponents.
“I am really pleased with the Harambee Stars' performance. To be honest, they proved me wrong. I had written them off before the match. I did not believe we could beat DRC.
While we started with some nervousness, we grew into the game and especially Sakari (Daniel), who was having problems dealing with his marker. He overcame that and actually contributed to the goal by Austin.
We now need to build on that win into our next matches. If we could even reach the quarter finals, that would be a great achievement for a debut in the tournament,” Kiplimo told Mozzart Sport after the match.
For Fredrick Owino, he acknowledged the impact of head coach Benni McCarthy on the Kenyan national team.
“I have always held the opinion that we have quality players to post decent results in the majority of matches, but have always been let down by inept coaching.
You can see the improvement we have had under McCarthy. From the comeback against The Gambia, the spirit in the loss to Gabon and Sunday's display.
For me, credit goes to the coach for the way he set up the team. We allowed them to have the ball high up the pitch but limited their influence in our defensive third,” remarked Owino.
In the Harambee Stars Facebook page, Samwel Kuria predicted a great tournament for the Kenyan team.
“We have always started poorly in tournaments and qualifiers, and only try to play catch-up in the latter stages. Now that we have started on a high note, I believe we can make it to the knockout stage.
I think if we could beat Angola and maybe force a draw in the other two matches, we would be good to go,” said Kuria.
For Paul Wafula, he noted areas that need improvement despite the win.
“Congratulations to Harambee Stars. That was a well-deserved win. However, we should improve on how we play after scoring because we lost so many balls. We should also sort out our striking, which looked blunt before the next match.”
Harambee Stars' performance also attracted reactions beyond the Kenyan borders, with renowned African sports journalist Puncherello Chama tipping Austin Odhiambo to move outside Kenya after the tournament.
“No disrespect to the Kenyan league, but why is the "Rolls Royce" still playing in Kenya? I recall a couple of years ago how Austin Odhiambo destroyed Zambia during the COSAFA CUP.
He also reminds one of another Odhiambo, George " Blackberry" Odhiambo who played for Gor Mahia some 10 years ago. For me, he is the best player to come out of Gor Mahia since probably 2015. Just wondering why he has not earned a big-money move yet.
Ultimately, I think this CHAN will be his tournament based on how he played against DR Congo,” posted Chama on his Facebook account.
Kenya's next match will be against Angola on Thursday, 7 August at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani.
