Legendary Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke arrives in the country Tuesday for a three-day visit courtesy of the Airtel Rising Stars programme.
Airtel Brand and Corporate Communications Director, Dick Omondi, said while in the country, the Trinidad and Tobago national will conduct a coaching clinic for Upper Hill and Olympic High School teams. The two schools will represent Kenya at the Airtel Rising Stars Africa championship in Nigeria next week. Yorke will also visit Mukuru Kwa Njenga Primary school.
The 43-year-old had a successful stint at Old Trafford from 1998 to 2002. During the four seasons, “The Smiling Assassin” formed a deadly striking partnership with Andy Cole leading United to an unprecedented Treble in 1999 after winning the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League that season.
Yorke’s colourful career at United, after arriving from Aston Villa, saw him score 66 goals in 152 appearances. Towards the end of his career, he also played for Blackburn Rovers, Birmingham City, Sydney FC and Sunderland.
Yorke launched his career in football management when he served as the assistant manager of the Trinidad and Tobago national team during the 2010 Fifa World Cup qualifying matches. He is currently an assistant coach for the Red Devils’ reserves.
Yorke’s arrival is a follow up to last month’s visit by officials from Manchester United. Led by Head of Marketing Jonathan Rigby, the United officials attended the national secondary schools finals in Embu last month to assess the progress made in youth football since the launch of Airtel Rising Stars programme two years ago.
Upper Hill and Olympic will face opponents from 14 African nations.
The Africa championship will attract teams from some of the powerhouses in the under 17 age group such as Ghana, Nigeria, Zambia, DRC pitted against upcoming nations such as Gabon, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Burkina Faso amongst others.
The tournament will have a preliminary qualifying round, a knockout round and a final.