Benni McCarthy suffers CHAN 2024 heartbreak as Kenya crash out at quarter-final

Bafana Bafana legend Benni McCarthy saw his good run with Kenya at the 2024 African Nations Championships (CHAN 2024) come to an end after losing on penalties to Madagascar at the quarter-final.

McCarthy had been on a dream run with the Harambee Stars after guiding them past a tough group but met his waterloo at the knockout round.

Kenya looked to have got the edge when defender Alphonce Omija headed in from a Boniface Muchiri freekick in the 48^th minute.

The Harambee Stars then thought they had scored the second goal soon after when they had the ball in the net courtesy of Ryan Ogam but it was ruled out as the ball had got out before the striker scored.

Kenya lacked quality in the final third

With 21 minutes to go, Kenya conceded a penalty when Manzur Okwaro handled the ball in the box and Fenohasina Razafimaro stepped up to send Kenya goalkeeper Byrne Omondi the wrong way.

This was after a goalless first half which was dominated by Kenya but without incisiveness in the final third that would trouble a well-organised Madagascar.

McCarthy made a host of substitutions in the second half to try and inject pace and cutting edge into his team and while he got it, Kenya’s final ball lacked quality with Madagascar happy to sit back.

Harambee Stars pay the penalty

With nothing to separate the two sides after 90 minutes, the game went into the extra 30 minutes but Madagascar’s defensive approach frustrated Kenya, forcing it into penalties.

Kenya scored three of their five spot kicks, all taken by defenders, with Mike Kibwage and Omija missing their attempts while Madagascar converted four to send the full Kasarani Stadium in Nairobi quiet.

The loss saw co-hosts Kenya miss out on a ticket to the semi-final, leaving McCarthy to pick the positives from what has been an impressive campaign.