This archive report was first published on 5 November 2019.
Published on November 5, 2019, Kenyan clubs have been struggling to make an impact in African club football, with recent defeats in the Caf Confederation Cup play-offs highlighting the challenges they face.
At the weekend, both Gor Mahia and Bandari were ousted from the competition, with Gor Mahia losing 2-1 to DC Motema Pembe (DR Congo) in Kinshasa, despite scoring first, and Bandari struggling against AC Horoya (Guinea).
Financial constraints, lack of planning, and limited experience have been cited as contributing factors to Kenyan clubs' struggles in African club football. Gor Mahia, for instance, was relegated from the Champions League to the Confederation Cup following a heavy 6-1 aggregate loss to Algeria's USM Algers in September.
Mercurial defender Wellington Ochieng scored Gor's lone goal in Kinshasa and attributed their loss to bad luck, stating, "It would have been a different ball game if we maintained our lead at the half-time break. We conceded an easy goal and it changed everything,"
However, there are also reports of internal issues within the club, including players going unpaid for three months and the failure to register influential players, which may have contributed to their defeat.
Bandari, on the other hand, was no match for the expensively assembled and experienced Horoya, with the West Africans being physically bigger and tactically better.
These results mean Kenyan clubs have missed out on at least Sh27 million after failing to make it to the group stage of this competition.
