Harambee Stars goalkeeper Patrick Matasi has revealed what led to his removal from the men’s national football team’s starting squad for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 and African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2024 qualifiers.
The Kenya Police showstopper was sidelined by Engin Firat during the fourth qualifying match against Cameroon in Uganda after starting in the sticks in Kenya’s 4-0 defeat in the first leg in Yaoundé.
Afterwards, Matasi did not receive a call-up when Harambee Stars played their final two AFCON qualifiers in South Africa against Zimbabwe and Namibia where the team ended up being eliminated.
In addition, the former AFC Leopards goalkeeper was also left out of the local squad that participated in the CHAN competition where Kenya was knocked out by South Sudan but qualified as a host nation for the 2025 tournament which Kenya will co-host alongside Uganda and Tanzania.
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Matasi explained that when the national team started the AFCON qualifiers in Uganda, Firat had already made his decision to drop him, though Matasi did not know why. He had approached the coach to ask for feedback and advice on what he could improve.
“When we started the AFCON qualifiers in Uganda, I didn’t know what happened until coach Engin Firat did not want to field me, so after the game I questioned him.
I gave him the facts and told him ‘Coach, I have played eight matches, scored eight goals and two goals conceded, that is a good performance and in the last game against Ivory Coast in Malawi I produced a clean sheet, what happened?” Matasi told Flashscore.
According to Matasi, the Turkish tactician said he arrived in camp too relaxed assuming he would start no matter what.
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“He said I went to camp relaxed knowing that I was the one going to start but I told him ‘if you see on the first day in camp that am relaxed, call me and tell me that this and this is not happening, do this and do that’ but he didn’t do that,” he explained.
He then explained how he confronted the coach and told him the truth before the match against Cameroon.
“Then the next call-up was against Cameroon so we prepared then we went to Cameroon without the coach showing who is going to start, so in the morning they didn’t even decide who was going to start,” explained Matasi.
“After that (during the pre-match talk) I just saw my name there, I was starting the game, so what I knew was this coach was going to mess up my career, and I told him the truth.
‘Coach, I know what you have done, you want to ruin my career with this match, why are you taking your weapons to the bench then you start with the small boys, who can’t even handle the pressure?” he questioned Firat.
Matasi admitted that he was under immense pressure from Kenyans, some of whom even wished for him and his family to die after he conceded four goals in the first leg against Cameroon. However, he believes he will bounce back to the national team.
“It wasn’t good because for me letting in the four goals (but) I took it positively, I told the coach ‘You have already tarnished my career through this game, I am okay.’ “he said
“I handled the pressure, I knew what Kenyans will say, they will abuse me, they will abuse my family, they will abuse me (for) what happened, until one of the fans came to my timeline and told me how he wished the accident I got in 2021 would have killed my family.”
“I told him my head is up, and at the end of the day, when I go back to my club, I will perform. Maybe when I get another chance, I will return to the national team.’”