Harambee Stars captain Michael Olunga has a chance to close in on a historic milestone for Kenya, if he scores against Gabon on Sunday, but which record is in his sights?
Harambee Stars captain Michael Olunga continues to divide opinion among Kenyans with his performances but when it comes to scoring goals, he still gets them.
While he had a subdued game against The Gambia on Thursday, Olunga was the man who started the comeback, when he scored a penalty after Jonah Ayunga had been brought down in the box.
The Harambee Stars skipper should have scored earlier when his header missed the target but he still got on the scoresheet nonetheless in a game which Kenya snatched a 3-3 draw in the last minute.
Fans praised Harambee Stars’ resilience in their 3-3 draw against Gambia, with many optimistic about Benni McCarthy’s impact despite concerns over team selection and Michael Olunga’s performance
That goal took Olunga’s tally for Kenya to 31 goals from 64 matches and it now leaves him just four behind the country’s all-time top scorer William Ouma.
Only two other men stand in the way of Olunga to Ouma’s record, being AFC Leopards legend Elijah Lidonde and legendary striker Dennis Oliech.
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Lidonde managed 33 goals for Harambee Stars in just 26 matches between 1950 and 1961 while Oliech got 34 goals which puts him second on the all-time list, having managed it in 76 games from 2002-2015.
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Harambee Stars captain Michael Olunga wants fans to rally behind the players and not focus on what they did not do right against The Gambia.
Ouma, meanwhile, leads the scoring chart for Kenya with 35 goals from 66 games scored between 1965 and 1977 but Olunga is now just four goals away from matching him.
The Al Duhail striker has a chance to get even closer on Sunday March 23 when Harambee Stars face Gabon at a sold-out Nyayo National Stadium as Benni McCarthy’s men look to build on their draw away to The Gambia.
Another goal or two would get Olunga closer to the record and he has the advantage of time, as none of the men on the list is still active, while he is still just 30 with plenty more matches to play.
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Harambee Stars will shift focus to their World Cup qualifier against Gabon in Nairobi on Sunday and here is everything you need to know about the must-win clash.
