Harambee Stars captain Michael Olunga gestures to the fans after scoring against Seychelles in their 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifier on Tuesday 9, at Kasarani Stadium. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]
Is this the time for Michael Olunga to finally make history?
The striker, now plying his trade in Qatar, is two goals shy of becoming Kenya’s record all-time top scorer.
Harambee Stars take on Burundi and the Ivory Coast in somewhat ‘dead-rubber’ matches in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, but the forward still harbours the thought of rewriting history.
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The towering forward currently is tied with Dennis “The Menace” Oliech on 34 goals, one behind the long-standing record (35) set by legendary William Ouma.
Yet, despite this huge milestone being within grasping distance, the national team captain insists that breaking the record is not the main priority.
Harambee Stars’ Captain Michael Olunga dribbles past Colley Omar Captain of Gambia team in their 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifier match at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]
Speaking on Monday at the team’s final training camp at the Police Sacco Stadium in Nairobi, Olunga explained that his main goal is to help the team.
“It’s not on my mind. The most important thing for me is to try and work hard, to try and help the team in whichever way possible…by scoring, by defending, by being there to try and lead the other players. So, not really in my mind, but of course it will be nice to do it,” Olunga told the press.
The 31-year-old scored a brace in September when Kenya hammered Seychelles 5-0 at the Kasarani Stadium, and football faithful will be hoping to crown a new king once the final round of the qualifiers are done with.
The ex-Girona man also clarified that while he is in no hurry to break Ouma’s record, achieving such for your national team is a dream for any professional.
“Of course, it’s a good achievement that any player would want to do. I’m looking forward to hopefully someday to be able to be an all-time top scorer. But still, at the end of the day, there’s still a lot of hard work to be done,” he said.
The forward has been a pillar for the national team both on and off the pitch. His leadership luckily, has coincided with a period of evident progress for the Harambee Stars. One could argue this was partly due to better infrastructure and preparation ahead of the African Nations Championship (CHAN 2024).
“You can see from the recent Chan games and the recent matches that we had here, with the massive support that we have at home, I believe we could have done better. But still, then again, it goes to show that the competition needs to start the tournaments much stronger…and also take advantage of each and every game that we play at home,” explained Olunga.
Currently fifth in the group with nine points, Harambee Stars are looking to finish their campaign on a positive. Even though it’s realistically impossible to qualify, the captain expects tough encounters nonetheless.
“It’s going to be a real test also for us. Also, the conditions there in terms of the pitch, they are different from what we are used to playing here. There is the AstroTurf…so, it poses another great challenge, and we want to see how we can handle it,” he concluded.
Benni McCarthy’s men take on Burundi at the Intwari Stadium in Bujumbura on October 9, 2025 (4pm EAT) before wrapping up their underwhelming campaign against Cote d’Ivoire at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan on October 14, 2025 (10pm EAT).
UTILITIES: Harambee Stars record all-time top scorers
William Ouma – 35 goals
Michael Olunga – 34 goals
Dennis Oliech – 34 goals
Elijah Lidonde – 33 goals
Livingstone Madegwa – 26 goals