Harambee Stars Humiliated By Mali In Group E World Cup Qualifier

Harambee Stars had a terrible outing in Morocco as they were thrashed 5-0 by Mali in a Group E 2022 World Cup Qualifier.

The match was the first in charge for new coach Engin Firat, who took over after Jacob 'Ghost' Mulee parted ways with the national team.

It was a debut to forget as Kenya dropped to third in the Group with two points, making it an uphill task and almost obliterating their World Cup dream.

Ibrahima Kone hit a hat-trick to inspire the resounding win, with Adama Traore and Moussa Doumbia adding one each to round up the goals.

This the first time Kenya have lost by such a huge margin since they were beaten 5-1 by Morocco in the 2006 World Cup Qualifiers.

Mali top the Group with 7 points, ahead of Uganda in second place with 5 points after they beat Rwanda 1-0 earlier on Thursday.

Rwanda remain rooted to the bottom of the table with a point to their name.

Mali took control of the game early on after Michael Olunga failed to give Stars the lead very early in the game and after Adama Traore's eighth minute opener, it was downhill from there.

The first half ended 4-0 in favor of Mali and Firat's second half changes saw Stars become more resolute, letting in only one goal.

Kenya will host Mali at the Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi on Sunday.