Benni McCarthy shocked South Africa and the football world at large when he agreed to coach the Kenya national team, Harambee Stars.
Prior to joining Kenya, the Bafana Bafana legend had served Manchester United as the strikers' coach before his two-year deal expired at the end of the 2023/24 season. Teams like Kaizer Chiefs and South Africa, alongside unnamed European teams and a few from Major League Soccer.
In his latest interview with CGTN, the 47-year-old has now opened up on why he decided to go to East Africa and help in rebuilding Harambee Stars as the country prepares to host the 2024 Chan and 2027 Africa Cup of Nations jointly with Tanzania and Uganda.
Benni was sold to the project
“I thought it was a great opportunity. It’s a prosperous country with a very ambitious new federation that just came into power,” he opened up when he was asked about his latest challenge with Harambee Stars.
“I think the project they sold me was that they want to build a team from now up until 2027, when they host the African Nations Cup. They want to be able to compete and establish a strong foothold in African football. I thought the opportunity and the foundation of football players they had were really good, and that my team and I could make a change.
“We could get the team ready for 2027 when they host the Nations Cup, and we could have a strong say in how the tournament unfolds and how far we can take Kenya; somewhere they’ve never been before. That looked like a decent project for my team and me, and that’s why Kenya,” he concluded.
