Bristol City stalwart Zak Vyner reflects on his indifferent summer, including maiden Kenya call-up

Bristol City stalwart Zak Vyner reflects on his indifferent summer, including maiden Kenya call-up

Mark Kinyanjui 18:10 - 09.07.2024

The defender was given his maiden call up to the Harambee Stars squad for their World Cup qualifying matches against Ivory Coast and Burundi but did not feature.

Harambee Stars and Bristol City prospect Zak Vyner Onyengo has reflected on his summer break after returning to the club for pre-season ahead of a grueling 2024/2025 Championship season.

Onyego, whose camoaign ended prematurely last season after picking up an injury, is with the side in Portugal, where they are stepping up preparations.

The 26-year-old defender was called up by Harambee Stars head coach Engin Firat for the first time, with Kenya facing Burundi and Ivory Coast in the recent 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, but did not play a part after his documentation failed to get processed in time.

He flew back to the UK before Kenya played Ivory Coast, but the matter is understood to have been settled by now, and he could be a part of the AFCON 2025 qualifiers this September.

Speaking on the side’s YouTube channel, Vyner reflected back on his summer, revealing his experience with Harambee Stars as a highlight.

“ It is very good. We got to some places where I went on holiday quite a bit,” Vyner told the club’s media channels.

“I went away with Kenya, enjoyed the sun a little bit, did the running obviously, and yeah, it was good.”

Firat had expressed his frustration at not having Vyner and fellow new call-up Tobias Knost cleared to play.

"We did all our tactical training with Zak Vyner. If Zak had been on the field today, we would have won,” he said in the aftermath of their 1-1 draw with Burundi.

“Sometimes people need to focus less on what's happening on the field and more on doing their jobs properly. Things that seem simple can be very complex here in Kenya," an irate Firat said after the draw against Burundi in Lilongwe.