Captain Wanyama upbeat ahead of Mozambique friendly

Harambee Stars captain Victor Wanyama has stressed the importance of developing a strong team mentality ahead of their two friendly matches against Mozambique and Liberia.

The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder was speaking after the Stars’ first training session where he urged them to always seek to improve as a team.

“It’s good that we are improving in ranking but, we need to focus more on building a winning team and have a strong foundation for the future,” Wanyama said.

Stars are set to play Mozambique on Saturday before playing Liberia three days later and the captain has labeled the two matches a great test.

The Mozambique squad jetted into the country on Wednesday night and is currently camping at the Kenya School of Monetary Studies (KSMS).

The team held its training on Thursday afternoon at the Utalii Grounds and will get a feel of the Kasarani Stadium turf on Friday ahead of the friendly on Saturday, as is required by both CAF and FIFA.

“They’re two teams that have a lot of talent and experience especially in the African Cup of Nations so we hope to gain a lot by playing against them,“ he added.

The 25-year-old was joined by a host of other foreign-based players that include Aboud Omar, Clifton Miheso, Michael Olunga and Amos Ekhalie.

Ayub Timbe who has been left out of the Saturday fixture as a precaution due to injury but is expected in the country on Saturday and may feature in the Tuesday fixture should he be cleared by the Stars medical team.

Stars’ First Coach Stanley Okumbi said he is impressed by the efforts put in by local based players and is willing to give each a chance to shine in the friendlies.

‘’We have players from the National Super League and other new call-ups from the Kenyan Premier League who have been performing well and we intend to use them build a strong team for the CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup,” Okumbi stated.