- Harambee Stars beat Pakistan on Wednesday
- Firat says he was unimpressed in the game
- He is expected to rotate his squad for the last game against Mauritius on Sunday
Harambee Stars head coach Engin Firat wants an improved performance from his side when they take on Mauritius in their second of two friendly matches on Sunday afternoon in the island nation.
Stars beat Pakistan 1-0 in their first match on Wednesday, but the tactician was not much impressed with the performance of the team.
“I am not happy with how we played. We were very slow and adapted to the Pakistan game because they put the tempo down. Pakistan played like a final, but our team was not in the shape that I wanted. 1-0 is not enough for me. We have to do more. Our passing has to improve and we have to work more,” said Stars coach Firat.
He added; “We play a tougher team in Mauritius. They are good and well organized. I watched them play against Djibouti and I know they will be a tough team to beat. We have to be more organized and pass the ball better especially moving forward.
The coach is expected to rotate his squad further, giving more players an opportunity to play as he continues building his squad depth.
Against Pakistan, he handed three players their debuts; Kakamega Homeboyz striker Moses Shummah, goalkeeper Bryne Omondi of KCB and defender Collins Sichenje, who plays his club football in Finland.
Shummah scores lone goal
Shummah found the back of the net in the 17th minute when he picked up the ball unmarked after it bounced off a Pakistan defender, He managed to stay calm and beat the keeper at his near post.
Stars had started brightly and their first sniff at goal was in the fifth minute was off a well orchestrated move that saw Amos Nondi find space on the right to whip in a low cross that was poked away for a corner right before Shummah pounced on it.
In the 27th minute, Pakistan defender Mahmoud Ali cleared the ball off the line to deny Shummah a second goal, the lanky forward having glanced a header from Richard Odada’s flick.
Odada, named man of the match, had put up a solid display in midfield and his combination with Teddy Akumu provided Stars with a steady block from where to build on.
In the second half, Stars continued dominating and Akumu came close to a goal on the hour mark when he was set up by Odada from the edge of the box, but his side footed shot went inches over the bar.
Pakistan rally to find equalizer
Pakistan however rallied in the final 20 minutes of the match, making the most of Stars’ sloppiness in possession. They had a shot on goal in the 79th minute, but debutant Bryne made a decent save.
They piled more pressure on Firat’s charges, but they managed to defend well and secured a clean sheet on top of the well worked victory.
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