CHAN 2024: Why Kenya Haven’t Qualified for Quarter-Finals Yet Despite Beating Morocco
- Kenya's Harambee Stars could still fail to qualify for CHAN 2024 quarter-finals despite beating Morocco on August 10
- The win over the two-time winners put them in a good place, but they still need one more result to be absolutely sure
- We look at what Kenya needs to guarantee their spot in the last eight of the tournament at their first time of asking
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Kenya took a huge step towards qualifying for the 2024 African Nations Championships quarter-finals after they beat Morocco on Sunday.
Source: Getty Images
Harambee Stars stunned the tournament favourites at a packed Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, to maintain their unbeaten start.
Head coach Benni McCarthy made massive changes to his preferred starting XI, bringing in fresh legs just days after playing against Angola.
Fan favourites like Austin Odhiambo and Alphonce Omija started on the bench as McCarthy gave new faces a chance against the North Africans.
Ryan Ogam scored the only goal of the game, showing great composure in the box to fire past El Mehdi Al Harrar in the Moroccan goal.
Harambee Stars withstood sustained pressure in the second half, especially after going down to 10 men, following Chrispine Erambo's sending off.
"I said to the players, the team that wants this the most is the one that runs the hardest. It's the one that's going to put in the foot where it hurts the most. And I think we did all that, and they got the reward," said McCarthy in his post-match remarks.
"You know, sometimes we are a work in progress. We're not perfect yet, but we're working towards being at the level where Morocco was. So, we knew we had to play a completely different game than what we wanted to play."
Why Kenya haven't qualified for CHAN 2024 quarter-finals yet
The win took them to seven points and on the verge of qualification. Kenya walked into the game against Morocco knowing that a win and favourable results elsewhere would seal progression to the next round.
However, Kenya will be forced to wait before they confirm their place in the last 8 after Angola beat Zambia on Sunday evening at Nyayo Stadium.
Angola's win means that two other teams can still beat Harambee Stars to the top two places in the group needed to qualify for the quarter-finals.
Source: Twitter
How Harambee Stars can be eliminated from CHAN 2024
Angola can surpass Harambee Stars if they beat DR Congo in their final game and Kenya loses to Zambia.
Pedro Goncalves' men will need a higher goal difference as the first tie-breaker of H2H results won't apply after they drew with Kenya.
One of Morocco and DR Congo can also surpass Kenya's tally. Both teams currently have three points each after playing two games.
Should they win both games and Kenya loses their remaining game against Zambia, then they could move to nine points, which is more than Kenya's seven.
Luckily for Kenya, Morocco and DR Congo play each other on the final day and therefore, one or both, must drop points. So, only one of the teams can surpass Kenya.
Zambia have zero points and cannot reach Kenya's tally as they only have two games remaining.
What does Kenya need to qualify for quarter-finals?
Simply put, a point against Zambia would be enough, no matter what happens in the other games.
A point would see them finish above Angola and one of DR Congo or Morocco. A win, on the other hand, will make them Group A winners and thus play their last 8 fixture in Nairobi.
Alternatively, Kenya can qualify without kicking a ball if Angola fails to beat DR Congo on Thursday, August 14.
Possible teams Kenya could face in CHAN 2024 quarter-finals
McCarthy's focus will be to finish on top of their group to ensure they play their quarter-final match in Nairobi.
Whoever wins Group A plays number two of Group B in Nairobi, while the second-placed in Group A plays Group B's winner in Dar es Salaam.
We looked at the permutations and assembled the possible teams Kenya could face.
Proofreading by Jackson Otukho, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
