With the Brave Warriors still unbeaten and topping Group B of the ongoing Cosafa Cup with six points from their last two wins against Senegal and Zimbabwe, Namibian veteran defender Ananias Gebhardt says there is no pressure to change tactics when they face Malawi today.
A 2-1 win over tournament guest participants Senegal in their opening match, followed by a 2-0 victory against regional rivals Zimbabwe on Sunday, saw the Brave Warriors solidify their strong grip atop Group B and heading into today’s third group encounter against the Flames of Malawi; Gebhardt believes there is no pressing need for them to change their approach.
“Tomorrow (today), we are playing against Malawi and the plan is to try and come out with maximum points. After the two opening wins against Senegal and Zimbabwe, the spirit in the camp has been very positive and everyone in the team is motivated to do great,” said the 32-year-old defender, who professionally plies this trade for South African premiership outfit Baroka FC.
“When there are so many positive vibes in the camp, the goal is to always go out there and win to keep the same spirit. We are taking it game by game and the approach will be the same against Malawi.”
Gebhardt, who was also part of the squad that won the historic 2015 Cosafa Cup, is impressed with how the team conducted business in their first two opening encounters, saying they played and fought as a unit, and discipline across all departments was at an all-time high.
“The first one was against Senegal and we had the plan, which we executed very well. We got the three points there – and through our approach of taking it game by game, we moved on to beat Zimbabwe and again collected three points. Now facing Malawi, we will go out and fight for the points.”
It will not be an easy assignment for the Namibian lads, as they will be facing a wounded Malawian side that is yet to record a win at the ongoing regional tournament, and they will be gunning to collect their first maximum points against the Warriors.
The Malawian Flames opened their Cosafa Cup campaign with a 2-all draw against Zimbabwe and was then followed by a 0-2 defeat against the Mambas of Mozambique on Sunday.
Malawi is currently sitting bottom of Group B with one point.
Mozambique is second with four points, Senegal third with three points and Zimbabwe in fourth place with two points.
- mkambukwe@nepc.com.na