Kenya were not ready to face Senegal in 8-0 humiliation – Muhiddin

Former Kenya national team head coach Twahir Muhiddin believes the team was not ready to play against Senegal in their 8-0 humiliation during the November FIFA international break at the Mardan Sports Complex, in Antalya, Turkey, on Tuesday.

Harambee Stars suffered their worst defeat in recent years after trailing 3-0 with only 15 minutes played. Spearheaded by Sadio Mane, Senegal scored their opener through Nicolas Jackson before El Hadji Malick Diouf made it 2-0.

Abdoulaye Seck set up Jackson to tap home the third, before Mane finished off a counter-attacking move in the 17th minute. Mane then scored from the penalty spot to make it 5-0 in the 30th minute before the Al Nassr star completed his hat-trick four minutes later.

The second half saw Senegal add the sixth two minutes from the restart courtesy of Ibrahim Mbaye before substitute Cherif Ndiaye sealed the emphatic win.

Kenya opened up the game for Senegal

“We were not ready, and that is an open secret after what happened,” Muhiddin told Citizen Digital. “When you play such an opponent, you don’t open the game. The most critical tactic is to defend deeply and hit them with a surprise counter-attack when they don’t expect it.

“This is Senegal, the best team in Africa and among the best in the world. Just the other day, they played against Brazil, one of the world’s best. You must give them respect and be cautious when facing them, or else they will destroy you.”

The former Bandari FC coach in the FKF Premier League added: “When you play a high-profile match like that against Senegal, you must be proud of the opportunity but also use it to gauge your performance, despite the heavy defeat.

“I don’t think there is something to worry about, but rather a need to work on the mistakes to improve the team for the future.”

Before playing Senegal, Kenya had suffered a 1-0 defeat against Equatorial Guinea.

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