First-choice Brave Warriors’ goalkeeper Lloydt Kazapua is confident in his teammates, as they face Liberia in today’s Group H match of the Fifa World Cup African qualifiers.
“The spirit is high; the players are eager to show what they can bring to the table. We want to go on the field and demonstrate our capabilities to the nation. It’s a World Cup qualifier, and we need to stick to the tactics. I am confident we will be victorious,” he told New Era Sport yesterday.
Only the group winner will qualify for the 2026 World Cup finals, which will be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States. The second-placed teams will enter a playoff round, determining which two sides will secure spots in the tournament.
Group H standings currently see Namibia at the top with six points, followed by
Tunisia in second place due to goal difference. Liberia sit in third place, ahead of Malawi, also by goal difference. Equatorial Guinea
are in fifth place, with São Tomé and Príncipe at the bottom of the group.
Captain Riaan Hanamub noted that Saturday’s international friendly match against Lesotho, which ended in a 1-1 draw, was good preparation for tonight’s game.
“We made a lot of mistakes, but these types of matches help us learn from them. We had great moments, the coach gave minutes to young players, and they performed well. As a senior player, it’s my job to motivate the young boys to make the most of this opportunity. They are talented and exciting players,” he said.
The Warriors will be captained by Hanamub in the absence of Peter Shalulile, who suffered a ‘freak injury’ in training just before his club Mamelodi Sundowns’ clash against Orlando Pirates in the Nedbank Cup final.
Former local sports journalist and editor Festus Nakatana expressed confidence in the Brave Warriors against Liberia.
“I believe the technical team has put together a youthful side, which shows their commitment to the future of Namibian football. We still have experienced campaigners like Deon Hotto, Kazapua, and Hanamub,” Nakatana said.
“Betuel Muzeu also had a fantastic season in South Africa. I have confidence that the boys can follow the instructions well on match-day and secure a morale-boosting win before the crucial match against Tunisia on 9 June, which will be looking to avenge their previous defeat.”
Namibia leads the group due to a three-point award by Fifa after Equatorial Guinea fielded an ineligible player, Emilio Nsue. The original match result was Equatorial Guinea 1–0 Namibia. Namibia then secured a 2-0 victory over São Tomé and Príncipe on 21 November last year.
The Warriors aim to build on these results as they face Liberia tonight at 18h00 at the Orlando Stadium.
This will be the fifth meeting between Liberia and Namibia, with each team having one win, and two goalless draws. The Namibians will once again be without their usual supporters, as they are playing away from home due to Namibian stadiums being deemed unfit for international matches.
-lmupetami@nepc.com.na