The Kenya Under 23 team has named unfamiliar faces in the squad that is set to represent the country in the forthcoming COSAFA Championship set for South Africa from June 26 to July 7, 2024.

The team, under the tutelage of Ken Odhiambo, is expected to be trimmed before they leave the country next week, with a chunk of players, picked from the national team that did duty earlier in the month against Burundi and Ivory Coast, expected to be retained.

While there are a few known faces in the team, coach Odhiambo has pulled a few surprises by calling some foreign-based players who haven’t been in the national team set-up before. So who are these new faces?

George Gitau (Middlesbrough, England)

Born to a Kenyan dad and German mother, Gitau has spent most of his life in the United Kingdom where he is currently in the books of Championship side Middlesbrough coached by former Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick.

While he predominantly features for the club’s youth team, he has had a taste of first-team football when he was named on the Boro’s bench during their FA Cup clash against Brighton early last year; a game which they lost.

Naturally a right back, Gitau can play at center back and represented Marske United on a brief loan stint before returning to his parent club earlier in the year.

Jeremy Bissau (Brooke House College, England)

Bissau isn’t new to Kenyans as the winger was part of the Talanta Hela team that participated in the Costa Daurada Cup staged in Tarragona, Spain last month.

Zech Obiero (Leyton Orient, England)

Obiero has previously expressed his desire to play for Harambee Stars and this will be a perfect opportunity for him to show what he can do. The son of former Gor Mahia player Aggrey Obonyo, Obiero signed a new deal with Orient earlier this year and is set to stay at the League One Club for the next two years. He has been a consistent figure in the team and will be hoping that having national caps can improve his profile as he dreams of making inroads in English football.

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