Wanyama announced his retirement from professional football on April 3, at age 34. He hung up his boots after a 19-year career, citing recurring knee injuries, and plans to transition into coaching while completing his UEFA A licence.
He announced his retirement on X (formerly Twitter), expressing pride in his journey from Nairobi to the top levels of European football, and concluded a 19-year career (17 of them professional) with Scottish Championship side Dunfermline Athletic.
Wanyama became the first ever Kenyan player to score in the UEFA Champions League when he scored the first goal in Celtic’s 2-1 win over Barcelona in 2012.
He has now come out to express his clear ambitions to coach the club, where he made his name after moving to Europe.
‘I can start with Scotland at Celtic’
“I have done my UEFA B and next month I have exams for UEFA A License,” Wanyama told Citizen TV as quoted by Pulse Sports.
“Things like these as a footballer are good. Just be part of everything. If you can’t coach join anything that can help you.”
The UEFA A Diploma, commonly known as the A Badge, is a high-level professional qualification ranked as the second-highest certification available, sitting directly below the UEFA Pro Diploma.
According to UEFA regulations, the UEFA A Diploma is divided into two tiers: advanced and elite. The advanced tier requires a UEFA B license and typically at least one year of experience. This qualifies coaches for top amateur levels, professional youth teams, and assistant roles in second-tier professional leagues.
The elite level is the UEFA Pro Diploma, the highest qualification required for managing in top-tier professional leagues such as the Premier League or La Liga, as well as national senior squads.
UEFA requires that a candidate hold a valid UEFA B license and complete at least one year of experience in 11-a-side football after graduating with the B license before applying for the UEFA A Diploma.
Wanyama added: “It doesn’t matter whether you want to be a coach or director, anything that can help you in the future, get involved and do it. I hope one day I can start with Scotland at Celtic. I hope one day I can get that opportunity. It would be good.”
While at CF Montreal, Wanyama worked under Wilfried Nancy, and the former Tottenham midfielder believes he learnt a lot from the coach.
“All the coaches that coached me, the likes of Mauricio and Koeman. I would say my last coach at Montreal, his name was Will, Wilfried Nancy,” explained Wanyama.
“I have seen him grow as a coach and he really taught me a lot and I was learning from him. I saw I can also learn and make my own history like what he has done for that club.”
Wanyama earned 64 caps for Kenya
Wanyama made his Celtic league debut in a 1-0 loss to St Johnstone on 21 August 2011. He played in central defence rather than his favoured central midfield role.
He came on as a late substitute in a 4-0 win over Motherwell, and played for the whole second half in a 2-0 League Cup win over Ross County. He started in Celtic’s 1-1 draw with Italian team Udinese in the Europa League.
This was his first European match for the club. Wanyama scored his first goal for Celtic in a 1-0 win over Hearts at Celtic Park, a tremendous 25-yard strike which hit the top corner.
His performances during December earned him the Scottish Premier League young player of the month award. He scored his second Celtic goal on 2 January 2012 in a 3-0 win against Dunfermline at East End Park.
Wanyama scored in Celtic’s 2-1 win against Dundee United at Celtic Park and in the 4-0 victory against Hearts at Tynecastle.
After making his international debut for the Kenya national team in May 2007 at the age of 15, Wanyama went on to earn over 64 caps for the country, and represented them at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Egypt.