Maqonda Ndlovu
SEVERAL former Brave Warriors coaches have expressed confidence that the national team will do well at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.
Speaking to New Era Sport on the eve of the team’s first game at the tournament, the coaches listed several factors, with all of them agreeing that the current squad had enough experience to withstand the pressure and challenges of playing at the continent’s top football tournament.
The ‘Father of the Team’ Rusten Mogane, the first coach to take the team to the Afcon in Burkina Faso in 1998, said the Brave Warriors will make Namibia proud by registering their first-ever victory at the tournament.
“First, I am proud of Collin (Benjamin) he is my son. From the things I hear about him from the players and the media, everyone is talking good about him. That is what the coach must do. Secondly, we have players on the team who were part of the previous tournament. They have matured. They have gained experience,” Mogane said.
He added that having beaten Cameroon and drawn with Ghana proves that players now understand their roles in the squad tactically and technically compared to his team then.
Mogane said his players were inexperienced, new on the scene, and were just happy to be there.
“Over the years, we have improved. When we went to Burkina Faso, Deon Hotto was eight years old; now he is 33. His journey started then,” Mogane said.
He added that Namibia can qualify for the knockout stages as long as the team executes its game plan accordingly.
He said playing outside Namibia for the past few years will play into the hands of the team.
Another former coach, Brian Isaacks, said the team is balanced with a mixture of old and new players who have matured technically and tactically over the years.
“I rate our chances of qualifying for the knockout stages 50-50 this time around, and the ball is in our court.
“Previously, the odds were always against us. It was 60-40, 70-30, and even 80-20, but this year, I see us beating Mali and South Africa.
Tunisia are a different team; they will trouble us, but they will not run over us,” Isaacks said.
He urged the players to stick to the game plan provided by the technical team, saying other ‘so-called minors’ have proven that it is possible to beat the so-called big teams.
Isaack’s views were echoed by Ricardo Mannetti who said the team will do better than in 2019, as the 12 players who participated in 2019 will bring the required experience.
“Of these 12, eight will feature in the first 11. This gives you an edge going into the tournament.
There are no easy groups or teams at Afcon; all groups and teams are tough. I am comfortable and positive to say we will pull off a victory this year,” he said.
Mannetti led Namibia to the Round of 16 in the 2018 Chan tournament in Morocco.
Having participated in the 1998, 2008 and 2019 tournaments where they failed to register a single victory, the Brave Warriors have set their eyes on registering a win in Ivory Coast.
The current coach Benjamin, played in the 2008 tournament and was the second assistant to Ricardo Mannetti in 2019. – jrnmarko@gmail.com