The Malawi U-17 National Team Head Coach Enos Chatama has received a major boost ahead of Sunday’s AFCON qualifier against Zambia, with six previously unavailable players now cleared to feature after receiving their passports.
Malawi opened their campaign with an impressive 3-1 victory over Madagascar, but Coach Chatama was forced to field players out of position as only 15 players were available for selection. Six squad members were ineligible due to missing passports.
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Despite timely applications and assurances that documents would be ready before departure, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services faced printing difficulties that delayed the process. However, the department responded swiftly to resolve the situation, with all six passports printed on Saturday, giving Chatama crucial squad depth for the encounter with neighboring Zambia.
The junior Chipolopolo suffered a disappointing 4-0 defeat to South Africa in their opener and will be desperate for a positive result against Malawi. However, Chatama believes his team is well-prepared for the anticipated clash.
“Before training [on Saturday], we analyzed Zambia’s strengths and weaknesses by watching their match against South Africa,” Chatama explained. “We also reviewed our own performance against Madagascar, identifying both positives and negatives. After such a productive training session, we believe we’ve taught the boys what it takes to beat Zambia.”
Malawi currently sit second in Group B on goal difference, with South Africa leading the table. The Bafana Bafana juniors have a goal difference of +4 compared to the Junior Flames’ +2.
Chatama acknowledged that his team found themselves in a challenging position after failing to convert several chances against Madagascar, but emphasized the importance of focusing on their immediate opponent.
“We must forget about South Africa for now. If we focus too much on the leaders, we’ll make mistakes and play under pressure,” he said. “Our approach is to enter the game with positive minds, study Zambia’s weaknesses, play to our strengths, and secure a good result.”
In their opener, Malawi controlled the first half with two spectacular goals. Joel Maziya opened the scoring in the 14th minute with a stunning long-range effort, before James Lumbe doubled the advantage 11 minutes later with another powerful strike from outside the penalty area.
Madagascar’s William Rambeloson missed a crucial opportunity to reduce the deficit, and that proved costly when Malawi were gifted a third goal. Goalkeeper Irintsoa Rakotoharimalala deflected a cross into his own net to make it 3-0.
Although Rambeloson managed to convert a late penalty for Madagascar, it served only as consolation in what was a comfortable victory for the Junior Flames.
While Malawi face Zambia, South Africa will take on Madagascar in the other Group B fixture at the TotalEnergies CAF Under-17 Africa Cup of Nations in Harare.
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