The 47-year-old McCarthy was officially unveiled on Monday after several months of speculations as a replacement for Turkish tactician Engin Firat, who was fired from the role after his failure to take Harambee Stars to the 35th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) scheduled for Morocco in 2025.
McCarthy, who will be assisted by Vasili Manoussaki, Joseph Moeneb (goalkeeper coach) and Pilela Maposa (performance analyst), signed a contract that will run until the 2027 AFCON to be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania.
His first assignment will be the World Cup qualifying matches against the Gambia away on March 17th, and the home game against Gabon on March 24th. However, he finds Kenya sitting fourth in Group F with five points, five less than leaders Ivory Coast, while Gabon are second with nine points and Burundi third with seven points.
Under Firat, Kenya had played four matches - a 2-1 defeat against Gabon, recovered to beat Seychelles 5-0, drew 1-1 against Burundi and secured a vital 0-0 draw against African champions Ivory Coast.
In McCarthy, Kenya have a David to inspire overcome the Goliath
In an exclusive interview with Atieno, after the unveiling of the former Bafana Bafana striker, the former Kenyan player said McCarthy’s arrival is what Kenyan football needed to wake up from the slumber land.
“I believe Benni (McCarthy’s) appointment is historic and a pivotal turning point for Kenyan football and the Harambee Stars,” Atieno frankly told Flashscore.
“As a footballing nation we have a Goliath to overcome but now I believe we have our David to inspire us to overcome the Goliath. Benni is one of the most decorated professional players from Africa. He knows how to overcome Goliaths.”
Atieno, who was born in Brixton, England to Kenyan parents but made a decision to play for Harambee Stars, went further to explain why he supported FKF’s decision to settle for McCarthy, whose last stint was an assistant role at Premier League outfit Manchester United.
“What I admire about Benni is he still wants to fight and he has maintained the love, desire, and passion for the game. This I believe will inspire the players to express themselves without fear and achieve greater milestones,” explained Atieno, who represented Kenya in the qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2010 and the African Cup of Nations (AFCON).
“As I’ve said before, Kenya is the 27th largest country in the world (England is 26th) and the seventh largest economy in Africa. We must start believing that we can qualify for a World Cup and use that belief to train and work harder than ever before.
“I was born and raised in a country that always qualifies for World Cups. Everyone in England believes and works towards that milestone. After 15 years in Kenyan football, I believe without any doubt that Kenya has the passion and love for football to reach that level of belief.
"When we all start dreaming and supporting each other positively to achieve this, that’s when dreams come true! But it takes a lot of hard work and sacrifice.”
McCarthy's appointment was a good decision – Kimanzi
Harambee Stars interim coach Francis Kimanzi welcomed the decision to appoint McCarthy saying he was very motivated and encouraged to support him in his quest to take Kenyan football to great heights.
“I think football is a very evolving sport and for me being involved in the discussion for the future in the journey that I have been very much and deeply involved, I am very happy because if the game is evolving that means the cultural exchange is very important, and it means sometimes you need somebody who is coming from outside and see what he can offer,” Kimanzi, who was the interim coach before McCarthy took over, told Flashscore.
“Football is the same everywhere, what we want to achieve here is what other teams want to achieve in Europe, so clearly football is the same but maybe sometimes we don’t get it right because of the situations behind the scenes. I am very sure and am also happy we now have a different eye in McCarthy, so I hope to share a lot with him, and also for the benefit of our local game.”
“We are all very behind with the all idea of appointing McCarthy, it is a good decision. It is about how we have been doing it and how Benni wants us to do it, we are very motivated, very encouraged and want to wish him a lot of luck in the journey to take Kenyan football to even greater heights.”
Former Harambee Stars striker Allan Wanga said: “I believe in coach McCarthy because he has a proven track record and he is a great addition to the national team.
“He was a striker just like me and during his stint at Manchester United as assistant coach, the strikers were in good form, so it’s a big plus for our strikers too. In the previous instances, we had coaches whose football careers weren’t even known but with him, we know his previous teams, this is a big step for us.”
FKF Vice-President Macdonald Mariga, who just like McCarthy, won the Champions League trophy with Inter Milan, explained what the South African will bring to Kenyan football and what led to his appointment.
‘We had a long list of coaches, who wanted to come, but we decided on who was the best to fit in Harambee Stars and we ended looking for someone who has experience in Europe, someone who knows and understands well African football, it was none other than McCarthy,” Mariga told Flashscore.
“If you bring together European experience and African experience, then McCarthy is the best option to take our football forward. McCarthy played in AFCON and was the top scorer, he played for South Africa at the World Cup and Kenya has never played in that stage, he won the Champions League. I think he is the one to help, we are on the right track.”
On his part, the FKF President said: “After a rigorous selection process, we are confident that McCarthy is the right person to lead our national team forward. His experience, vision, and commitment to developing Kenyan football align perfectly with our ambitions.
“The federation, in collaboration with the Ministry, is committed to building a competitive national team capable of challenging football’s elite. We will continue working closely to ensure the new Harambee Stars technical bench receives the necessary support for success.”
Former Gor Mahia and Kenyan legend John Bobby Ogolla said: “It is a new dawn for Kenyan football, a fresh start indeed, but I want to plead with FKF to give McCarthy time, we should not judge him because of two or three matches.
“We need to give him enough time, give him support, and allow him a free hand to do his job, he is a good coach, we all know about him and I am sure if gets full backing from every one of us, we will see the fruits.”
On Tuesday, McCarthy accompanied by goalkeepers' trainer Moineeb Josephs, paid a courtesy call to Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for Youth Affairs, Creative Economy, and Sports, Hon. Salim Mvurya, and PS Eng. Peter K. Tum.
CS Mvurya expressed confidence in McCarthy’s ability to elevate the team, citing his experience at the highest level of football.
