Kenya coach Benni McCarthy believes the timing of Pitso Mosimane’s return to Bafana Bafana could give Harambee Stars an advantage when the two sides meet in back-to-back AFCON 2027 qualifiers in November.
McCarthy will come up against his home country as Kenya prepare for their first AFCON campaign as co-hosts, alongside Uganda and Tanzania.
The former Bafana striker believes South Africa’s coaching change could work in Kenya’s favour, with Mosimane still implementing his ideas after returning for his second spell in charge.
McCarthy feels it will take time for Bafana’s players to fully understand their new coach’s philosophy, and Kenya could look to exploit that adjustment period.
“As good as they are, we have seen them at the World Cup but whenever there’s a change of guard, it takes time for players to understand a new head coach,” McCarthy said on Sporty TV.
“It takes time to understand his philosophy, how he plays and what he wants to achieve.
“So, maybe the (change of coach) could have come at a better (time) for us because it will take a couple of games for South Africa to play the way Pitso wants to play.”
Mosimane has already made a winning start to his second spell, guiding Bafana to a victory over Guinea in their opening AFCON 2027 qualifier at the Orlando Amstel Arena on Saturday.
The result gives South Africa three points in a Group D that also contains Kenya and Eritrea.
Kenya, however, are already guaranteed a place at next year’s tournament as one of the three hosts, meaning their matches against South Africa and the other teams will still have an important role in determining the group’s remaining qualification place.
The two countries will meet twice in November, giving McCarthy a particularly interesting reunion with his former national team.
For Mosimane, those fixtures will provide another test of how quickly his new-look Bafana side can adapt to his methods.
And McCarthy believes that transition period could present Kenya with an opportunity.
