• “No team wins all the matches in the world. I think we have a team to nurture ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations which will be hosted in Kenya and neighbours, Uganda and Tanzanian,” said Firat.
• Meanwhile, disappointed Elephants coach Emase Fae rued poor field conditions, which affected their free-flowing football.
Image: HANDOUT
Harambee Stars head coach Engine Firat is proud of his players after holding African champions Cote d’Ivoire to a barren draw in Lilongwe, Malawi.
“We did our best. I feel good about the boys. They now have confidence after four matches from Group F.”
Firat, who has been under pressure, said they deserved a win after playing but will take the point.
“No team wins all the matches in the world. I think we have a team to nurture ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations which will be hosted in Kenya and neighbours, Uganda and Tanzanian,” he said.
Firat also commended debutant right-back Alphonse Otieno, who tamed Brighton forward Simon Adingra.
However, he rued the missed chances and playing away from home did not help. He hopes to play their next matches at home.
Meanwhile, disappointed Elephants coach Emase Fae rued poor field conditions, which affected their free-flowing football.
“If the field was better, we would have played well. The conditions made it easier for Kenya to stop our free-flowing football,” said Fae.
Buoyed by around 500 fans at the 41,000-seater Mbingu National Stadium, the Stars frustrated the star-studded Elephants, who resorted to long shots and counterattacks.
The game started slowly with Stars playing a 4-5-1 formation with skipper Michael Olunga a lone ranger upfront.
Firat parked the midfield to shield the defence, knowing too well the danger posed by speedy Adingra and Latte Junior.
There was nothing solid upfront with most balls scrummed in midfield where Fofana won most of the balls at the expense of Kenneth Muguna and Richard Odada.
Seko Fofana's 23rd-minute shot veered off target with goalkeeper Patrick Matasi caught napping.
The only shot on target in the opening 25 minutes came from defender Aboud Omar's freekick, which Ivorian keeper Yahia Fofana held onto.
The Ivorians were fast off the blocks in the second half, forcing three consecutive corners that were thwarted by the Kenyan defence with Johnstone Omurwa and Daniel Anyembe.
Stars' best chance came in the 72nd minute after Olunga broke lose in the left wing but his shot was blocked by the defence line for a corner.
Olunga went clear in the 82nd minute after leaving Willy Bolly for dead but his shot was saved by Fofana.
The end-to-end game saw Omar Diakite's thunderbolt hit the crossbar and bounced back to play with Matasi well-beaten.
Adingra broke on the left wing for the second time after beating Rooney Onyango and Otieno, who had shut him down the whole game, but Odada blocked the ball off the line.
Clyde Senaji, who replaced Odada made another clearance as Kenya parked the bus to secure a point.
The unbeaten Elephants are top of the group with 10 points from four games. Gabon are second with six points from three matches, followed by Kenya (five points in four matches).