Mponda: We want to expose many players and give chances to everyone at Cosafa

Malawi’s Flames assistant coach, Peter Mponda, has revealed that the team’s primary objective for the ongoing Cosafa Cup is to expose and give playing opportunities to young and upcoming players.

The Flames are currently participating in the tournament with a mix of experienced and young players, with Mponda believing that the competition provides a perfect platform for the youngsters to gain valuable match experience.

“We want to expose many players and give chances to those who are here,” Mponda added. “We left a lot of good players back home. If we were only focused on getting instant results, we would have brought them.

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“But we’re using this tournament to prepare and give everyone a fair opportunity — so that come AFCON and World Cup qualifiers, we have depth and experience across the squad.”

Mponda’s comments come as the Flames prepare to face Namibia in their second Group B match. After losing their opening match to Lesotho, the team will be looking to bounce back and make a strong impression in the tournament.

The match against Namibia will also provide an opportunity for the Flames’ young players to test themselves against a tough opponent. Namibia has been in good form, going six matches unbeaten, and the Flames will need to be at their best to overcome them.

Despite the challenge ahead, Mponda is confident that the Flames’ young players will rise to the occasion. “We are prepared for this second game. We know where we failed against Lesotho. We had our video session and analysed the game thoroughly. One thing we picked up clearly was our lack of presence in the box. We simply didn’t have enough bodies there.”

“In football, dominating possession doesn’t win you games. You need to get into the box and score goals. We’ve spoken to the boys and are finalising our tactical adjustments on the pitch.

“It’s the same story even in Lilongwe. We dominated possession, and they scored. But we’ve taken time to analyse that game as well. Namibia are a very good team, and most of their current squad featured in that match. But we’re not using that as an excuse — we know what we’re doing, and we trust the players we brought here.”

The match between Malawi and Namibia kicks off at 15h00 CAT on Sunday, and the Flames will be looking to make a strong statement and impress with their performances.