McCarthy says Kenya coaching staff remain unpaid before South Africa clash

Kenya coach Benni McCarthy says he and his technical team are still waiting for their salaries, despite players receiving outstanding allowances before an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Guinea.

The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) has been affected by administrative turmoil in recent months, with reports of corruption, unpaid salaries and poor governance. The problems have left McCarthy and his players effectively operating under protest.

Speaking to SportyTV, McCarthy said efforts had been made to ensure the players were paid before the trip to Guinea, but the coaching staff had received nothing.

“Obviously, travelling to Guinea, it was still the same: players waiting. But eventually in drips and drabs most of the players ended up getting allowances because enough pressure was put on the federation and the ministry to come good,” he said.

“But yeah, the coach and technical team still have nothing.”

McCarthy, who will lead Kenya against his home country South Africa, said the financial difficulties would not distract the team from its work. He said his aim was to leave Kenyan football in a stronger position than he found it.

The former South Africa striker also warned that the FKF could face action from football’s continental and world governing bodies if the dispute is not resolved.

“At the end of the day, my job is always to go there and leave Kenya in a better position than I found it,” McCarthy said. “I am striving for that. At the end of the day, the authorities will come good. They’ll have to pay, because Fifa and CAF will intervene in these situations.”

He added: “We are professional enough. We go there and do our jobs. After football matches, we’ll fight for whatever we need to fight for. While we are there, we have a duty to make the players better and leave the country in a far better state football-wise.”

McCarthy will put the off-field dispute to one side when Kenya face South Africa in the first of two back-to-back Afcon qualifiers at Orlando Stadium on Friday at 6pm.

He said that, despite his affection for South Africa, his commitment would be entirely with Kenya’s Harambee Stars for Friday’s match and the return fixture in Kenya next Tuesday.

McCarthy also expressed satisfaction with the progress made since taking charge, alongside his technical staff, including Moeneeb Josephs and Vasili Manousakis.

“So far, we are head and shoulders above with what we’ve achieved. When we found Kenyan football, I didn’t even know it before I took over,” he said.

“But now that I am in the job, it’s brought so many rewards.”