Harambee Stars midfielder reveals lessons from loss to Ivory Coast
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Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 16.10.25. | 11:50
The Australian-born attacker has been one of the constant figures in coach Benni McCarthy's squad since he received his first call-up to the national team in March
Kenyan international William Lenkupae has disclosed his key takeaways from Kenya’s loss to Ivory Coast in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Kenya faced the West African nation in their final qualifier match held on Tuesday, 14 October at the Stade Olimpique Alassana Ouattara Stadium, with the hosts securing a 3-0 victory.
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Kenya’s woes began in the seventh minute when former Barcelona midfielder broke the deadlock. Despite being just a goal down at halftime, Kenya had been outrun and outclassed throughout the half.
In the second half, Ivory Coast capitalized on their dominance and scored two goals courtesy of teenager Yan Diamonde’s 54th-minute strike and a sublime free kick in the 84th minute by Manchester United winger Amad Diallo.
Speaking to the media after the match, Lenkupae, who played for 80 minutes, shared his lessons from the match.
“I think we have realized the different levels of football. They have a great team, but obviously you want to win games like that,” said Lenkupae.
On levels, Kenya’s squad for the match had no player featuring in any of Europe’s top five leagues, while their Ivorian counterparts had six players from the English Premier League (EPL) alone.
With a rare opportunity to compete with such players, Lenkupae could not help but draw inspiration from his opponents.
“To me, it is now to get back to my club, work even harder because at the end of the day, the qualifiers are over, but it is time to push myself to get ready for the next camp and hopefully play at the levels the Ivorians play at,” he stated.
The Australian-born attacker has been one of the constant figures in coach Benni McCarthy's squad since he received his first call-up to the national team in March and scored a 95th-minute equalizer on his debut in a World Cup qualifier match against The Gambia that ended in a 3-3 draw.
