…says Taifa Stars no walkover
WINDHOEK – Despite being hit by the unavailability of various key players, Brave Warriors coach Ricardo Mannetti has refused to let the situation dampen the team’s spirit ahead of tonight’s international friendly against Tanzania, saying he expects nothing short of a victory for the home side.
With the showdown billed for the Sam Nujoma Stadium tonight at 20h00, Mannetti yesterday morning took all his attacking players through the paces in an attempt to come up with new offensive strategies, while also urging the front players to be more creative in front of the goalmouth. According to Mannetti, scoring goals has been a headache and remedies are hard to come by. “We know that goal scoring is a national problem and I have taken it upon myself to engage with the attackers. It has started as early as the beginning of the year and so far I can see some improvements. The situation won’t improve overnight, but we can do whatever we can within the limited time available to us,” says Mannetti.
The coach worked with the likes of Jerome Louis, Tangeni Shipahu, Awillo Stephanus, Bryan Bantam, Panduleni Nekundi and others, in the hopes that he can hone the strike force sufficiently to lethal effect. “I’m very impressed with the foreign-based players, they look very sharp and lethal and Awillo is one of the locals that has so far impressed me as well. Awillo is in rich goal scoring form and I think he has scored four goals in three matches for Black Africa this year already, so I hope he continues with that form and hopefully scores tonight,” added Mannetti, who expressed satisfaction with the fitness level of his charges.
“We have to understand that we have to get the right balance between our attack and defense and so being in an international friendly match gives us the freedom of making six substitutions and people should expect to see more players given a run tonight, but ultimately a win is far more important for us and for the people that are coming to encourage and cheer for the team.” But Mannetti remains mindful of the potential threat posed by the Tanzanians.
“I have seen some videos of them play and mind you most of their players play for their top clubs like Zimba and Young Africans, who recently beat Al Ahly of Egypt in the CAF Champions League, so they have a good, strong team and we have to be well prepared for them.” Unfortunately Platinum Stars striker Henrico Botes is unlikely to be a part of the team. “We can play with or without Henrico, but it would have been ideal to have all our players available but it can also be a blessing in disguise for others.”
– Additional reporting by nfa.org.na
By Otniel Hembapu