Kenya's 2025 AFCON hopes crushed after draw with Zimbabwe

• Harambee Stars 2025 Africa Cup of Nations journey has come to an end after drawing with Zimbabwe
• Kenya needed to beat the Warriors to stand a chance of reaching the tournament but will now watch it from home
• Five-time champions Cameroon and Zimbabwe are the teams from Group J that have qualified

Harambee Stars dream of playing at the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations are over after a frustrating draw with Zimbabwe.

Kenya made a positive start in the first half but struggled to create chances.

Engin Firat's side will start preparing for the 2027 edition following their setback in South Africa.

Harambee Stars’ defeat to Cameroon proved to be costly in their 2025 AFCON bid. Photo by Phill Magakoe.
Source: UGC

Zimbabwe vs Kenya report

In the 31st minute, seconds after Ronney Onyango had missed a golden opportunity, Zimbabwe opened the scoring.

Goalkeeper Washington Arubi's quick thinking saw Zimbabwe go on a swift counterattack, which was expertly finished by Tawanda Maswanhise.

The Warriors went into the break with a slim 1-0 lead which was cancelled minutes into the second half.

A scramble in Zimbabwe's goal saw Jonah Ayunga slot past Arubi after Zimbabwe failed to clear the loose ball. Kenya couldn't find a winner in the second half.

Kenya needed to beat Zimbabwe and Namibia to qualify for the tournament.

Missed opportunity for Kenya?

They last played in the tournament in 2019 and have only played in two AFCONs in 30 years.

Their back-to-back defeats to Cameroon put a serious dent in their campaign. They were top of the group after the first two matches, but they were no match for the Indomitable Lions. One win could've helped them reach the tournament in Morocco.

The good news is Kenya will play in the 2027 tournament as one of the hosts.

Another major talking point among fans will be the coach, Engin Firat. He is in his third year as Harambee Stars coach, and results haven't met expectations.

It remains to be seen if he will be the coach after they play Namibia in their final Group J match next week.

How Libya could qualify for AFCON

In another report, Legit.ng Nigeria have qualified for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, but the other members of Group D could still qualify, including Libya, who are bottom of the table.

After CAF's judgement on the airport hostage saga, Libya needed to win their final two games and rely on Nigeria's results to qualify for the tournament.

Matchday five saw the Knights score a late winner through Fahad Al Mesmari to defeat Rwanda on their home turf, thus doing the first part of their difficult but not impossible task.

Source: TUKO.co.ke