What do Kenya football stars eat?

Just what do Kenyan Premier League players eat to meet the rigours of the strenous demands of the local game?

Newly installed Harambee Stars assistant coach in charge of Fitness and Nutrition, Florent Motta, will soon be snooping around the kitchens of players to find out what gets into their plates and subsequently their alimentary canals.

When Arsene Wenger arrived at Arsenal in 1996 from Japanese side Nagoya Grampus Eight, the Frenchman declared that the root problem of the English game and by extension the Gunners players was diet.

He is quoted to have said then that: “As a coach you can influence the diet of your players. You can point out what is wrong.”

Wenger directed that Arsenal get dieticians to explain the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

Soon boiled fish, pasta and vegetables became a staple of the average Arsenal player’s diet.

According to Wenger, if a player does not have a healthy diet, they will not be able to train as hard, and will struggle to improve their play and be more susceptible to tiredness.

Wenger’s success at Arsenal has been replicated elsewhere and chances are Frenchman Motta, who together with coach Henri Michel have been given a freehand to advise KPL clubs, will want to borrow a leaf from the Gunners.

Most clubs in the KPL spend between Sh100 to Sh150 on lunch per player, which more often than not is given in cash to individual players, who in turn make do with a bottle of soda and bread.

For years, the better-placed teams, by Kenyan standards, would go to Burma Market, opposite City Stadium, Nairobi, before matches for fried chunks of red meat, matumbo, chicken or liver served with ugali — a suicidal menu according to Wenger and Villareal doctor.

According to Sofapaka captain James Situma and Muhoroni Youth goalkeeper Joseck Gathogo, financial constraint and lack of nutritionist weighs heavily against them.

“You wish you could eat healthily but it is not just possible,” Gathogo said.

Local players undeniably have the worst eating habits that if Motta is to succeed with Harambee Stars, he will be forced to supervise what players eat at club level and by extension in their homes.

However, it will be a tough ask for the tight-fisted, but also hand to mouth Kenyan clubs to put their players on good diet. The players’ personal eating habits, too, is one hurdle Motta will need to overcome.

Players bemused

The story of fruits and fresh juices is unheard of in the diet of a Kenyan player.

Manchester United boss admitted that changing the diet of his United squad after taking charge in 1986 left several players bemused.

He said: “When I started as a coach — and before they started talking about diets — I used to take my team at East Stirling for lunch.

“All I would give them was two slices of lemon sole, toast and honey. They used to go crazy. When I was a player, they used to give you fillet steaks and steak pie and things like that.

“So when I became a manager I said to myself ‘What they eat before a game is as important as what happens during the game’.

Villarreal club doctor Hector Uso recently told uefa.com what he believes are the ideal meals for a young player to eat before and after a match.

“The meal before the match should consist of carbohydrates with just a little protein because proteins might cause difficulties with digestion. At that moment you could say that the energy basis of the player is set up.”

Kenyan players, however, do not help the situation. It is not uncommon to see them on stadium terraces chewing loads of miraa (Khat) with a bottle of soda and gum.

The Kenyan scenario is a compelling case of how not to eat if you are a professional player— a mighty job for Motta.