The Bafana Bafana record scorer with 31 goals, Kenya head coach Benni McCarthy explains why modern centre-forwards struggle to overtake him and hopes to see Lyle Foster (10 goals) take up the mantle.
On Friday, after the 2-2 draw between Kenya and South Africa at the Orlando Amstel Arena in Soweto, in the AFCON 2027 qualifiers, Benni McCarthy spoke about his own record: 31 goals, the benchmark in Bafana Bafana history, according to Foot-Africa.
Lyle Foster, the South Africa international striker, has 10 goals for his national team. McCarthy hopes to see him one day succeed him at the top of the scorers’ chart, while pointing to the obstacles facing today’s centre-forwards.
Inverted wingers in the dock
For the former striker, the difficulty lies in the way the game has changed. “Listen, it’s not just the case in South Africa, it’s a worldwide phenomenon. When you look at modern football, most teams now play with inverted wingers,” he told Foot-Africa.
The direct consequence, in his view: the near-post cross, the ball the centre-forward used to wait for to run onto, has become rare. “So you no longer get near-post crosses to allow strikers to make their run into that area. It’s difficult when you play a left-footer on the right or a right-footer on the left,” continued the Kenya head coach.
McCarthy measures this evolution against the football he knew. He cites his former teammates Delron Buckley, Shaun Bartlett and Sibusiso Zuma to illustrate the game of his era.
Ten goals and a long road ahead
The challenge can be measured in numbers. Foster has 10 goals for his national team, a little less than a third of McCarthy’s total. To reach the record holder’s 31 goals, he would still need 21 more.
McCarthy therefore hopes Foster will eventually succeed him as the national team’s all-time top scorer.
See you in Nairobi
The two-legged tie continues on 17 November 2026 in Nairobi, with the return match between Kenya and South Africa, still in the AFCON 2027 qualifiers.