Kenya is a country known for a large number of national parks, tourism, coffee, and perhaps most famous for the speed of its people that brought countless Olympic medals in running athletic disciplines.
Football, however, has never been their strong point, well, at least not until a couple of years ago, when in 2019 at the African Nations Exhibition, they proved that today everyone plays football and that they can be respectable opponents to much stronger and more experienced national teams.
Five years have passed since then, they did not appear at the last AFCON, but not because of their footballing skills, but because of the FIFA suspension that automatically eliminated them from the qualification.
However, despite all the adversities that are in front of them, Kenya as a nation is a land of sports talents, so in this article, we have revealed Kenya’s rising stars.
In the continuation of this text, you will find out everything about the young hopes of Kenyan football and their influence on the future of sport in Kenya.
Rising Stars
Michael Olunga
Although he is currently 29 years old, Michael Olunga is still a rising star that has a lot to prove to the football world and let’s start with the fact that he is currently ranked 22nd on the list of the world’s best scorers.
He currently plays for Al Duhail from Doha and has so far managed to score 35 goals, which is 19 less than the winner of the title of the best scorer, Cristiano Ronaldo.
What is interesting is that Olunga decided on a football career relatively late, considering that his first love had always been aeronautics.
Only after he finished university and worked as an engineer in commercial aviation, did he decide to dedicate himself to football, and soon after won football fans all over the world, from Sweden, Spain, and China, to Japan and finally Qatar.
As a striker, he is distinguished by height and speed, which complement his outstanding ball control on both feet.
He is extremely strong on both sides of the field offense and defense, however, his excessive ambition in critical moments of the game occasionally emerges as a problem in team play.
He is certainly the biggest star and most-paid Kenyan footballer, who with his academic achievements has proved that footballers can be successful both on and off the field.
Daniel Anyembe
Daniel Anyembe is a 25-year-old Kenyan defender, who was born and currently plays in Denmark, and has decided to play for his father’s country of birth.
He currently plays for the Viborg team, where until the recent injury he showed enviable form, which significantly increased his market value.
Although he was the captain of the Danish national team in the youth team, this 189 cm tall right-footer says that his performance for the Kenyan national team was never in question and that he was just waiting for the call.
Impact on Kenyan Football
Kenyan football players, who play in different leagues around the world, have given a new dimension to Kenyan sports, and have become a true example for all who want to play sports.
In a country where football has not always been the most popular, they managed to emerge and find themselves side by side with the greatest football players of today.
Their presence on the world stage, both as individuals and as members of the national team, also aroused great interest among football and betting fans, since their successes are unusual and unexpected.
Their performances are attracting a lot of interest, especially after their almost unreal performance at AFCON 2019, when they narrowly missed reaching the knockout stage.
Although it seems like a small achievement, for a running nation, it was one of the biggest football successes so far.
Upcoming Games
This year, the Kenya national team is expected to play two games, where they will host the national teams of Burundi and Cote d’Ivoire, on June 3 and 6.
These matches are played as part of the CAF World Cup qualifiers, and Kenya is currently in third place with one win and one loss from two matches.
The Burundi team has the same effect, while the Ivory Coast leads the table with two wins.
These will certainly be matches that will bring a lot of excitement among fans, bettors and especially users of tomorrow prediction platforms, as after being prevented from participating in the AFCON, Kenyans certainly have something to fight for.
Success Stories
Kenya can boast of great athletes, who have achieved success both on and off the field.
When Michael Olunga was younger, he turned down numerous offers that might have promised a brighter career, but he remained persistent in his wishes and first completed his studies in aeronautics.
Despite everything that the Danish national team offered him, Daniel Anyembe felt that he belonged to Kenya, and decided to defend the colors of the Kenyan flag.
We also forgot Victor Wanyama, who is undoubtedly one of the greatest Kenyan football players, and who in his career recorded appearances for some of the best European clubs, including the English Premier League’s Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur.
Finally, we can say that although football in Kenya has been in a dormant phase for a long time, the time has finally come for it to start an upward trajectory.
Stars like Olunga and Anyembe, with their distinct patriotism, set a real example for young people, and let the football world know that their country can record great successes, and the sports public can’t wait to witness it.
