The Turkish trainer says he has full confidence in his skipper, despite not having scored for the national team in the last three matches.

He however provided the assist in the 2-1 win against Qatar in Doha, and Firat says his skipper does more in the team than just score goals.

“Michael is one of the best players I have had in my coaching career and I am very happy to have him. He is so important to us as a leader. He was injured against Qatar, but in minute 90, you see what he did? That’s Michael and I am happy to have him,” Firat said.

He added; “I am happy with his contribution to the team and how he helps the young players. He is a great leader for me and the team.”

Meanwhile, the tactician has said one of the biggest things he has to work on to improve in the team moving forward is the creativity, an area he believes lacks a lot.

“The reality is that Kenyan football is missing lots of creative players. (Against South Sudan) we were organized and pressed well, physically strong but the had very little creativity. We can have problems sometimes against teams which defend well and play deep. This is something we need to work on and it is for me to find solutions,” noted the coach.

Firat believes that the team has done well over the last two games against Qatar and South Sudan despite losing in the latter, and says he now has a bit of work to do before the World Cup qualifiers in November.