Harambee Stars coach Jacob ‘Ghost’ Mulee says he will resign if the Football Kenya Federation interferes with the selection of the national team.
Controversy has risen ever since the Harambee Stars provisional squad for the 2022 Fifa World Cup qualifiers was named and the veteran tactician has spoken for the first time on what he thinks about the squad.
“If they interfere with my job, I will resign, I will resign tomorrow. It’s not that I love this job that much, it comes with a lot of pressure,” he said during a popular radio sports show.
“We do consultations with my assistants and the federation has no say on what we decide. The federations work is to administrate football, matters technical are strictly our, however, we always consult around on whom to pick,” he added.
The absence of the likes of Victor Wanyama, Anthony Agay Akumu, Johanna Omollo among others raised eyebrows among many football stakeholders but the coach has said that the door is still open for all active players locally and internationally.
“The national team is in a place where you have a passport and can be called upon to play, however for the World Cup qualifiers, there is a provisional list that you provide and submit to CAF and FIFA. It is from that pool of players that you pick those that will play the first and second games but you have an option of inclusion and exclusion depending on the circumstances. So there is still room for everybody, we are not locking anyone out,” he continued.
Harambee Stars are scheduled to play Uganda on September 2, 2021 at Nyayo stadium before traveling to Kigali, Rwanda to face the hosts three days later.
Kenya is in Group E alongside Rwanda, Mali, and Uganda.