Harambee Stars coach Sebastien Migne has rallied behind his goalkeeper Patrick Matasi following his howler which gifted Ghana a slim 1-0 win on Saturday in Accra.
Stars were cruising to a famous barren draw against Ghana till 83rd minute when Matasi let in what looked like an easy goal from Caleb Ekuban to the disappointment of many fans back at home.
“You know this is football and when something happens people will always have something to talk about,” the St. George custodian told the Daily Nation on Monday.
“If you look at that goal, we lost the ball in the midfield and my defense had not fallen back hence the striker managed to beat them. I miscalculated my reaction while going down within seconds and that’s why the ball slipped,” he added.
“Save for the goal, it was a good game, all of us played according to the coach’s instructions, we expected to get something from that match because it was our last but unfortunately we didn’t.”
said the former Posta Rangers and Tusker man, who has now shifted his focus to club duty.
Migne absolved his first choice goalkeeper Patrick Matasi of his costly howler.
“He committed a mistake but I don’t forget what he did before for us,” admitted Migne.
“Anyone can make mistakes say Victor (Wanyama), Olunga (Michael) or Masud (Juma) but teammates will react quickly to rectify the situation, when you are a goalkeeper it’s more difficult to be covered for a mistake, it’s not easy to be a good goalkeeper but he is on the right track.
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“Since I came, he has been fantastic with at least five clean sheets. Against Ghana, until the 83rd minute he was on another clean sheet so we should not forget what he did for us.
“I remember in the first leg against Ghana, he produced an outstanding save at one moment, maybe it was more difficult on Saturday because we traveled during the night a day before the match. You know he is a tall guy it’s not the best way to travel in such manner but first of all, he needs to work harder if he wants to be sure in the first eleven.”
The win ensured Ghana finished first in Group F with Kenya second and Ethiopia third.
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