Abbas: Only Origi comes close to top Kenyan ‘keepers
Former Harambee Stars goalkeeper Mahmoud Abbas believes only Arnold Origi has come close to reaching the heights of top shot-stoppers in Kenya.
Abbas, popularly referred to as Kenya One, has questioned the calibre of goalkeepers being minted currently arguing that they are not ripe, blaming it on the continued lack of investment in that area.
“The days of greats like James Sianga, Dan Odhiambo and Mohammed Magogo are now behind us and in fact since the 90s, I believe only Arnold Origi stood out in that very important area but now, he has retired unless he changes his mind,” Abbas, who led AFC Leopards and Harambee Stars to CECAFA glory in the late 70s, told People Sport yesterday.
Abbas, 64, has urged the country’s football authorities and scouts to put a lot of emphasis in that department which has been Kenya’s Achilles heel for ages particularly on the international stage.
“We have a big problem in that position as a country and sadly, nobody has bothered to fix it.
If a football team has a good goalkeeper, then there is stability and so this is what Football Kenya Federation need to be looking at going forward,” added Abbas.
He went on: “A proper analyst will tell you that the biggest weakness with the national team over the past decade is certainly the goalkeeping position.”
