MISSED OPPORTUNITY: Kenya’s exit from AFCON denied players chance to market themselves, says Were

Paul Were. [PHOTO:DENNIS OKEYO/STANDARD]

Harambee Stars midfielder Paul Were has admitted that being eliminated from the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers came with a huge price especially for foreign-based players like himself.

The AmaZulu player said he would have loved to market himself in next year’s Africa Cup of Nations finals in Morocco.

Kenya was edged out by Lesotho from the pre-qualifiers, denying them an opportunity to make it to the group stages of the competition.

“The elimination by Lesotho affected us a lot. As a professional player, it always helps your case when you have more caps with the national team. You are appreciated more as a player,” he said in an interview in Durban.

He said the country’s inactivity at a time when teams are playing in the qualifiers may affect the movement of local players especially to the Premier Soccer League (PSL).

“Teams in the PSL determine a lot a country’s ranking before signing a player. It is disappointing that Kenya will not be in Morocco while other weaker leagues in the region like Uganda have that chance.

“We were all looking forward to that great exposure in Morocco next year to market ourselves and hopefully get bigger clubs in future,” he said.

Were recently got his work permit to start featuring for AmaZulu and admits the delay affected his match fitness.

“Not getting the document on time meant I had to miss the first six matches of the season and this had an impact on my match fitness. Also, I was required to go back home and apply for a visa again. I had to wait for six working days before I could join my club again. But this is now behind me and I am now focused on helping the club do well,” he said.

The delay, he revealed, also meant that he could not get a rental house and had to stay in the club house.

“Without a work permit, it is difficult to open a bank account or even rent a house. Now that I have it, I can  bring over my young daughter whom I miss very much since coming here,” he revealed.

Apart from his daughter, Were said he also misses the local food and his mother as well as the friends he grew up with.

Were is so determined to succeed in South Africa that he has ruled out any chance of coming back to the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) as some of his colleagues have done in the past.

“I am determined to succeed here. For me, this is a stepping stone to bigger things. If I succeed here, chances are that it will open many doors and so there is no chance of going back to the KPL,” he concluded.