Cameroon’s coach Paul Le Guen plans to field his first choice line-up against Harambee Stars in their much-awaited international friendly at Kasarani Saturday.
Despite the wide FIFA ranking disparity between the two teams, Le Guen said he was not going to underrate the host side as he prepares his team for the continental showcase, kicking-off on Sunday in Angola where they expect to face stronger opposition.
Initially the match was to be played at Nyayo Stadium but was switched to Kasarani at the request of Cameroon.
Kenya also boasts a good record against the Indomitable Lions, never losing to them for the last two decades and Le Guen clearly knows morale would be a vital factor for his side if Cameroon has to win their fifth continental title.
The Indomitable Lions arrived in Nairobi on Tuesday night for a five-day training camp before they fly to Angola. They arrived with their entire cream of players who feature in the European top-flight leagues, not to mention their skipper Samuel Eto’o of Italian champions Inter Milan, Alexandre Song of English Premier League side Arsenal and Jean Makoun of French giants Olympic Lyon.
« We have done everything possible to ensure we prepare well for the African Nations Cup finals in Angola and the purpose of our visit here is for that event, » said Frenchman Le Guen.
Le Guen, who took the Lions through their paces in an evening training session on Wednesday, said he would take the Saturday friendly seriously as they expect a tricky opening match against rivals Gabon.
Harambee Stars coach Twahir Muhiddin said they are disappointed by the switch expressing fear that many fans may not turn up at Kasarani.
He said: « We expected a good crowd at Nyayo. We wanted the team to be near their fans. »
The Lions, who are booked in at the Windsor Golf and Country Club, have been training twice a day and Le Guen is satisfied with the response of the players in camp.
Weather conditions
« The players are really enjoying it here, given that most of them arrived from European cities where it is winter at the moment. We chose to pitch camp in Kenya because the weather conditions here are similar to those in Lubango, Angola where we will play our Group D matches, » said the coach. Kenya is ranked 98th in the latest Fifa rankings, while Cameroon are ranked 11th.
Elsewhere, two Kenyan players are excited about the prospect of playing against the mighty Indomitable Lions tomorrow.
Gor Mahia defender Peter Opiyo has termed it as « the biggest match for most of them ».
Said Opiyo: « It is a great match considering that not many in this team have played at this level before. However, we are not intimidated and hope for a positive result. »
By James Waindi
