By Mabvuto Kambuwe:
Malawi national football team interim Coach Meke Mwase has described the 2019 Cosafa Cup draw as fair but asked for thorough preparations ahead of the tournament slated for May 25-June 8 in Durban, South Africa.
The draw for the tournament was conducted on Thursday night in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The Flames have been drawn in Group B alongside much-improved Namibia, Mozambique and Seychelles whereas Group A comprises Angola, eSwatini, Comoros Islands and Mauritius.
Mwase said the draw is fair and the Flames could do well with good preparations.
“I think it is a fair draw for us but we just need to prepare well. Of course, most teams in our region have improved but we are also a good team. We expect a good tournament this time,” Mwase said.
After comical displays in two consecutive Cosafa tournaments, Mwase is hoping to bring smiles on Malawians’ faces at a competition his team has never won before.
Mwase is likely to maintain his trust in most of the locally based players he has called for training for the African Nations Championship second-leg encounter against eSwatini on May 11 at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre.
Should Malawi progress to the Cosafa quarterfinals, they will meet familiar foes Zambia whereas Group A winners will face defending champions Zimbabwe.
Former Flames defender, Clement Kafwafwa, also said Malawi was drawn in a fair group.
“We have to find the perfect balance for the team because we are struggling. But there is hope with the coming of the new technical panel and we need to give them a chance. The team should gauge it’s strength through such tournaments. But we must be cautious with some of the teams in our group because they have shown great signs of improvement,” Kafwafwa said.
Other quarterfinal ties at the tournament will involve hosts South Africa and Botswana whereas Lesotho date guest nation Uganda.
Malawi has struggled to go past the group stages in the last two Cosafa competitions besides also finding it difficult to score.
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