After a month in charge, Harambee Stars coach Benni McCarthy has made a strong comparison between players in South Africa and Kenya.
The all-time Bafana Bafana top goal scorer has been in charge of the Kenya National team since March.
His first match was a 3-3 draw against Gambia, but he suffered a 2-1 defeat against Gabon in his second match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
The 47-year-old has been moving around the East African country watching some of the domestic matches.
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Speaking on NTV Kenya on Wednesday, McCarthy shared his experience of how he has viewed the ambition of the Kenyan players as compared to his native country.
“I am from South Africa, and it’s an extremely talented country. Players pop up from everywhere, but their ambition is very low,” he said.
“In South Africa, players are exceptionally talented; they have what it takes, but they are happy to stay in South Africa. They don’t want to move because they are in their comfort zone. For me, that is underselling yourself because to be the best, you have to play against the best. You have to test yourself against the best in the world. In South Africa, you are not going to get that.”
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“What I have experienced here in Kenya, there are some many players going abroad to Europe. So they are not afraid to step out of their comfort zone, because the belief is such that ‘yes’, I can achieve that, I can play in Europe’.
“I love that because you see so much of that in Kenya when you talk to the players in the national team. Because Kenya has that, how can you not get excited about players who have those kinds of beliefs and ambitions?”
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