The CHAN 2024 LOC chairman has explained why he fears the tournament might suffer greatly unless Harambee Stars make their way past the ‘Group of Death.’
Nicholas Musonye, chairman of the 2024 African Nations Championships (CHAN 2024) Local Organising Committee, is keen to ensure Harambee Stars make it past their group.
Kenya were pooled in a tough Group A alongside Morocco, DR Congo, Zambia and Angola with many observers feeling they have little chance of making it to the knockout round.
However, for Musonye, there are no two ways about it as he believes the tournament will suffer if Kenya or any of the other co-hosts Uganda and Tanzania exit at the group stage.
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As the draw was conducted at KICC’s Tsavo Ballroom on Wednesday night, attending Kenyan football stakeholders were understandably disgruntled any time Kenya were pitted against another opponent in group A of CHAN 2024. However, there are five reasons why the ‘group of death’ is a blessing in disguise for Harambee Stars.
Musonye points to the tendency of Kenyans not following matches when Harambee Stars are not involved as something that can be catastrophic for the tournament if Kenya were to be eliminated at the group stage.
“We have discussed with FKF to prepare our team well, we have also told Uganda to prepare their team well. Tanzania the same, so that we don’t lose out in the group stage because that would be the end of the competition,” Musonye told NTV.
“You know Kenyans when Harambee Stars lose, they say the tournament is finished, let us go and have a beer in Westlands as we watch from there.
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Tanzania Football Federation boss Wallace Karia has explained how bidding together for both CHAN 2024 and AFCON 2027 has affected East Africa’s plans for the two tournaments.
“We want to compel them [fans] to come to the stadium by playing well so that we do not give Kenyans that room of saying after all, we are not there because they have that complacency. We want to go all the way to the final.”
While Kenya plot how they will navigate past the ‘Group of Death, Tanzania also face tricky opponents in Group B, where they have Madagascar, Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Central African Republic while Uganda, who will be featuring in their eighth CHAN tournament, take on Niger, Guinea and two other teams that are yet to complete the qualifiers in Group C.
Defending champions Senegal are in Group D alongside Congo Brazzaville, Sudan and Nigeria with the tournament set to take place in August this year.
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Former Kenyan international James Situma beleives Kenya has the right ingredients to over tough group A in CHAN
