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The former Kenyan international has decried the poor criteria Kenya is relying on to unearth football talents while providing solutions to how best to solve the issue.
Former Harambee Stars striker Taiwo Atieno wants Kenya to move away from relying on school games and corporate-backed tournaments to nurture and identify football talent.
The English-born forward feels school games and the tournaments only put the talents to the fore but does not develop them into professional players that can go on and play in top leagues and also boost the national team.
While such events have previously unearthed some football gems, Atieno is of the opinion that much more is required to increase the pool of players and coaches as just a handful actually go on to make it professionally through such pathways.
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06:08 - 02.01.2025
Taiwo Atieno on why wrong naming of Kenyan clubs has left them in ruins
The former Harambee Stars forward says Kenyan clubs are struggling to attract investors because they are not named correctly.
“Talent always rises to the top. Aside from Denis [Oliech] and Victor [Wanyama], schools and tournaments won’t develop good players—they’ll only uncover them,” Atieno observed.
“At the moment, Kenya has a “mining” approach to football: we search for gems rather than investing in the development of professional football philosophies, coaches, and facilities.”
It is for this reason that the former Rochdale, Chester City, Rochester Rhinos and Luton Town player does not fancy initiatives like Talanta Hela which has been heavily backed and championed by the Ministry of Sports.
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16:31 - 01.01.2025
‘We may never see another Wanyama’ - Former Harambee Stars forward casts doubts on potential of Kenyan players
The ex-striker fears Kenya may never produce another player of Victor Wanyama’s calibre due to a number of factors affecting the country’s football.
“Tournaments and programmes like Talanta Hela cannot sustain themselves or create a pipeline for nurturing talent,” he added.
“This can only be achieved through professional football clubs that are structured for long-term investment. Developing talent is expensive and requires genuine football expertise—something that doesn’t exist within governments or corporate sponsors.”
There have been a number of tournaments in the country organised by various corporates over the years with some of them unearthing football talents that have secured deals in Kenya and abroad while school games have always played a pivotal role.
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06:14 - 31.12.2024
Harambee Stars interim coach Francis Kimanzi identifies best way to fix national team’s woes
Harambee Stars interim coach Francis Kimanzi has explained how Kenya can best fix the problems bedeviling the national team following years of underachievement.
With Kenya’s poor talent development structures, scouts have relied on the school games and corporate-sponsored tournaments to identify budding footballers although just a few make it professionally.
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