Benni McCarthy made his fifth playing appearance for South Africa against Angola in the group stage of the 1998 Africa Cup of Nations in Burkina Faso.
Bafana Bafana won 2-0 and went all the way to the final, but finished second after losing 2-0 to Egypt.
McCarthy will once again face Angola in the group stage of the 2024 African Nations Championship, in his sixth game with Harambee Stars. He will be hoping for history to repeat itself with another win against the Palancas Negras and passage to the final.
The South African coach, however, knows that situations cannot always align perfectly.
Adaptation and improvisation are needed to keep things going, and against Angola in their second Group ‘A’ match, Harambee Stars may line up differently from how they did in their opening match against DR Congo, which they won 1-0 at Kasarani last Sunday.
After that win, McCarthy said he may not deploy 19-year-old left back Manzur Suleiman in defensive midfield again soon despite the teenager performing well in the role. McCarthy hinted at more changes at Wednesday’s pre-match press conference.
“Masoud Juma has a minor injury and he may not feature tomorrow (Thursday),” he said.
Still, the 47-year-old South African gave an assurance that “whoever will be selected will give their best” because he is creating a winning culture at Harambee Stars. “I want Kenya to be difficult to beat.”
Those without tickets have been advised to avoid using Thika Road if they are not going to Kasarani Stadium. Instead, they should watch the match on national broadcaster KBC TV.
National Police Service announced yesterday that the sections of Douglas Wakiihuri Road, Langata Road, and Mombasa Road that surround the Nyayo National Stadium, where the other Group “A” match between DR Congo and Zambia will be played at 4pm, will be closed.
It will not just be 55 million people that Harambee Stars will be fighting hard to save against Angola.
They will be playing for another fat winning bonus following a promise made by President William Ruto to reward each player with Sh1 million for every win and Sh500,000 for a draw.
A win against Angola will see Harambee Stars jump to the top of Group “A” with six points and put them in the driving seat to qualify for the quarter-finals.
Qualifying for the knock-out stage would earn Harambee Stars at least Sh60 million in prize money from the CAF tournament purse of $10.4m (about Sh1.34 billion). Gates open at 2pm.
One player who will espouse that mentality is Gor Mahia defender Alphonse Omija, who accompanied McCarthy to the press conference.
Omija made a goal-line clearance soon after Austin Odhiambo had scored Kenya’s opener against DR Congo. Omija described the clearance as “a good moment that saved 55 million people”.
Against Angola, Omija and his teammates will once again have 55 million Kenyans rallying behind them, with 48,000 of them cheering them in the stadium.
Tickets for Kenya’s match against Angola were sold out almost as soon as they went on sale.
Tickets for Kenya’s Sunday match against two-time Chan champions Morocco have also sold out, reflecting the love Kenyans have for watching their beloved Harambee Stars play, more so, on home soil.
