Gor Mahia skipper Kenneth Muguna was deployed as a substitute. But his efforts failed to yield a result for Harambee Stars whose hopes of qualifying for the 2021 AFCON have all but collapsed. Comoros dimmed Kenya 2-1 in Moroni on Sunday.
Other former Gor Mahia players in action were David Owino “Calabar” who replaced Samuel Olwande in the line-up as well as Lawrence Juma who replaced off-color Eric Johana.
El Fardou Ben gave the home side the lead in the 21st minute, but Cliff Nyakeya restored parity for Kenya in the 36th minute.
Faiz Mattoir hit the winner for Comoros in the 49th minute and they held out to claim the three points that takes them top of Group ‘G’ with eight points, five ahead of Kenya who remain in third place with three points.
Muguna made his appearance in the 41st minute, replacing Lawrence Juma. His impact was immediate as he put Timbe through for a shot on goal but the effort was deflected for a corner.
Kenya have yet to win a match in this series of qualifiers, something that has never happened. Kenya now needs to beat Egypt in Nairobi and beat Togo in Lome to stand any chance of qualifying.
The golden boy yet again was former Gor Mahia youth ace Clifford Nyakeya who is arguably the best Kenya player in this campaign. It was his efforts that yielded a crucial goal that helped Kenya snatch a point against Egypt in Cairo for the first time ever. He worked hard to extract the ball from an Egyptian defender before passing to Olunga for an easy tap in.
Stars had been promised Ksh 5 million by FKF chairman Nick Mwendwa if they won the match.