Moment of truth for Kenya against Madagascar in 2024 CHAN

History, alongside both monetary and material reward will be at stake for Kenya’s Harambee Stars when they clash with Madagascar in the quarter-finals of the 2024 African Nations Championship (Chan) at the 48,000-seater Moi International Sports Centre (MISC) Kasarani in Nairobi today from 5pm.

The sold-out match will mark the 11th meeting between the two sides in history, with Kenya holding an edge - five wins, three defeats and two draws.

Competing in their first Chan tournament, Kenya have already made history by qualifying for the knock-out stage, and a win over Madagascar nicknamed "Barea" would spice up that feat.

It would also mean more goodies for Harambee Stars as President William Ruto has promised to reward each squad member with Sh 1 million, and a two-bedroom house should they win the match.

Additionally, the team will be guaranteed more earnings from CAF’s record purse of Sh1.3 billion ($10,400,000) for the 19-nation tournament. Kenya qualified for the quarter-finals stage as the top-ranked team in Group “A” with 10 points.

Two-time Chan champions Morocco also booked a ticket to the last eight round by virtue of finishing second in the pool with nine points while two-time champions DRC, Angola and Zambia were eliminated after finishing third, fourth and fifth with six, four and zero points respectively.

On the other hand, Madagascar qualified for the quarter-finals stage as the second-ranked team in Group “B” with seven points behind leaders Tanzania, who garnered 10 points. Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Central Africa Republic were eliminated from the group after finishing third, fourth and fifth with seven, three and one point respectively. More fans are expected to attend the match after CAF yesterday increased the attendance to 80 per cent.

In Kenya’s last group match against Zambia, CAF capped the attendance to 27,000 following crowd trouble that was witnessed in Harambee Stars’ previous match against Morocco.

Both Kenya and Madagascar head into the highly-anticipated clash aware that it won’t be easy, having already proven that they are no lightweights.

Harambee Stars coach Benni McCarthy, however, draws confidence from his side’s impressive performance at the group stage but cautioned that they must be “extra sharp” in all departments to secure victory.

Drawn in the “Group of Death”, Kenya stunned DRC 1-0 before battling to a 1-1 draw with Angola. Harambee Stars then edged giants Morocco 1-0 before capping that impressive group-stage campaign with another narrow 1-0 victory over Zambia. Remarkably, Stars played over an hour with 10 men against both Morocco and Angola following red cards on midfielders Marvine Nabwire and Chrispine Erambo respectively. “I think after the test that we faced in the group stages, there is no team that we are afraid of anymore or that we think our chances are slim against,” said McCarthy at the pre-match conference in Kasarani on Thursday.

“When you face DRC, Morocco, Angola and Zambia, that is a tough task and you say to yourself like our chances (of progressing to the group stage) are simply none but we proved that we are capable of surpassing this so whoever comes next will really be a good challenge and we just try to focus on ourselves, what we have to do and that will be good enough for us to advance to the next stage,” added the South African football legend. He admitted to facing a selection headache as all players are fit for the match. Only midfielder Chrispin Erambo will not be available for selection as he is still suspended following a straight red card he received in their match against Morocco.

In the group stage, Kenya proved solid at the back, conceding only once - against Angola. While the hosts have not created many open scoring chances, striker Ryan Ogam delivered the decisive goals against both Morocco and Zambia while attacking midfielder Austine Odhiambo found the net against DRC and Angola.

With Madagascar boasting of one of the tournament’s standout goalkeepers in 39-year-old Michel Ramandimbisoa, McCarthy said all players must be “extra sharp” in the match. Ramandimbisoa has saved 17 of the 20 shots he faced in his four outings so far. He has been named the man-of-the-match three times, against Mauritania, the Central African Republic and Burkina Faso.

“We need to work extra hard because on the other side we are going to have a goalkeeper that knows what it is about performing incredibly on match day, “said the former Manchester United first-team forwards’ coach. “We have to be extra sharp not just in striking but everybody should be ready to take up the challenge to score goals. It won’t be an easy challenge but we relish it. They best be well prepared because we will,” added the former Porto and West Ham United forward.

Apart from Ramandimbisoa, Madagascar’s other key player is midfielder Lalaina Cliver Rafanomesantsoa who has contributed four of their five goals this campaign, scoring two goals and registering as many assists.

Ramandimbisoa and Rafanomesantsoa were in the team that finished third in Algeria. Madagascar’s 60-year-old coach Romauld Rakotondrabe said he anticipates a tough clash against Kenya, pointing to their huge home support. “Kenya are good both technically and tactically. We must be very efficient to be able to win tomorrow. We must concentrate to the maximum level,” said Rakotondrabe, singling out strike Ogam as one of the top players Kenya has.

“He can change a match on his own,” said Rakotondrabe of the Tusker’s striker. According to the latest Fifa rankings, Kenya are ranked 11th while Madagascar are placed 115th. Should Kenya win the match, they will be guaranteed at least Sh77.4 million ($600,000) from CAF.

Out of the CAF’s record prize purse of Sh 1.3 billion ($10,400,000), the winner receiving Sh 452.2 million ($3,500,000) while second-placed team will pocket Sh 155 million ($1,200,000) while the teams that finish third and fourth will receive Sh 90.4 million ($700,000) and Sh77. 4million ($600,000) respectively. By virtue of reaching the quarter-finals stage, Kenya are currently guaranteed Sh Sh58.1 million ($450,000) but a ticket to the semi-finals will see the earnings increase to Sh77. 4million. However, it is important to note that earnings from tournaments such as Chan goes to the country’s football federation, and the amount the players receive depends on their agreement with the federation.

Already, each Harambee Stars’ squad member has pocketed a total of Sh5 million for their impressive performance at the Group “A” campaign. President Ruto pledged to reward each Harambee Stars’ squad member with Sh 1million for every win and Sh500, 000 for every draw.

After Kenya defeated DRC, Morocco and drew with Angola, the Head of State raised the stakes by promising Sh2.5 million to every squad member. Later after the win, ODM leader Raila Odinga promised each squad member Sh500, 000 bringing the total reward to Sh3 million each. The player received the money on Monday.