Kenya appoint ex-South Africa striker McCarthy as manager

Kenya named former South Africa international Benni McCarthy as coach on Monday, some three weeks before they resume their World Cup qualification campaign.

He will debut this March with an away match against The Gambia followed by a home clash with Gabon.

Kenya trail leaders Côte d’Ivoire by five points in World Cup qualifying Group F but have six matches to play.

The group winners qualify for the finals with the four best runners-up having the chance to progress via a second round.

READ ALSO:Deputy Senate President praises Gwarzo for quality education commitment

Kenya will co-host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals with Tanzania and Uganda but did qualify for the 2025 finals in Morocco.

McCarthy, unveiled at a news conference in Nairobi, was last on the staff at Manchester United for two seasons under manager Erik ten Hag, working as a coach for the strikers.

His previous managerial experience has been at South African clubs Cape Town City and AmaZulu.

READ ALSO:Customs seizes 28,300 litres of smuggled petrol worth N35.8m

The 47-year-old McCarthy, who won 80 caps for South Africa and scored at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups, played in the Premier League for Blackburn Rovers and West Ham United.

He lifted the Champions League with Porto in 2004.

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Why are you flagging this comment?

I disagree with this user

Targeted harassment - posted harassing comments or discussions targeting me, or encouraged others to do so

Spam - posted spam comments or discussions

Inappropriate profile - profile contains inappropriate images or text

Threatening content - posted directly threatening content

Private information - posted someone else's personally identifiable information

Before flagging, please keep