Harambee Stars head coach Engin Firat has revealed why he included Armenian-based midfielder Alwyn Tera in the team ahead of the start of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. Tera secured a late call to the team on Wednesday night but will miss the opening encounter against Zimbabwe as he has yet to link up with the team in Uganda. ##NAJAVA_MECA_8318183##Stars will launch their bid to return to the AFCON with a clash against Zimbabwe on Friday at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Namboole, Uganda. In his final address to the media, Firat revealed that Tera comes into the team as a direct replacement for the Sweden-based Timothy Ouma. Ouma, who has been on top of his game at Elfsborg, is among the seven international players who had been included in the provisional squad but will miss the game against Zimbabwe. Firat disclosed that Michael Olunga, Johnstone Omurwa, Ian Otieno, Daniel Anyembe, Tobias Knost, and Collins Sichenje were all in his plans, but injuries and challenges in securing release with their clubs forced him to look for options. Firat laments Olunga’s unavailability, hints at surprises for Friday’s clash against ZimbabweThe tactician said Tera, who is making a return to the team after three years in the cold, will most likely feature in the subsequent game against Namibia on Tuesday next week. “After we encountered difficulties in having Timothy in camp, we had to fill the gap, and Alwyn was the best replacement. Unfortunately, he will not be with us today but will be involved against Namibia,” he said.Firat has, in the past, been heavily criticized for drafting players who were not in the provisional squad into the final team a few days or hours before kickoff. The Turkish coach says he intends not to bring in new faces before the clash against Namibia that will be staged in South Africa. “I hope I will not be forced to call in new players. The absence of seven players is more than enough, he added. ‘We can only dream of such stadiums in Kenya’ – Harambee Stars head coach in Uganda
