Kenya to return to international action with Iran friendly

NAIROBI, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Kenya will play 2022 World Cup team Iran in an international friendly on March 28 in Tehran, the country's federation announced on Wednesday.

This will be the first match for Kenya's Harambee Stars in over a year after the country was suspended from international football by the world governing body FIFA in March last year over government interference.

Kenya was originally scheduled to play Burundi in Nairobi but according to Football Kenya Federation (FKF), a last-minute decision by the latter to play Indonesia in Jakarta necessitated the change to Iran whom Kenya had planned to play later on in the year.

"Iran is a world-class team. Playing a tough opponent is a chance to push our players to the maximum, to make them familiar with high-level football and show the difference between where we are and where we want to be," Stars Turkish head coach Engin Firat said in a statement issued in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

Firat who returned to Kenya at the beginning of this month added playing higher-ranked teams will help Kenya gear up for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations and World Cup continental qualifiers.