Malawi Under-20 Women’s Football Team coach Maggie Chombo-Sadiki is confident of an away victory against Guinea Bissau in Fifa Under-20 Women’s World Cup third preliminary round qualifiers despite not playing international friendly matches. The tactician said this in an interview after unveiling her 27-member squad. “We will not have an opportunity for an international friendly match ahead of the away first leg against Guinea Bissau, but I have strong belief that we will build a final squad, strong enough to secure victory,” said Chombo-Sadiki.
She said her confidence stems from the fact that her charges have been active throughout the season courtesy of the inaugural National Bank of Malawi (NBM) Women’s Premiership. “We have been monitoring the performance and improvement of the players through the NBM Women’s Premiership and we are happy with what we have seen so far,” said Chombo-Sadiki. The team started local camp during the week at Mpira Village in Chiwembe Township, Blantyre, in preparation for the first leg away on February 7 and the second leg at home on February 14.
The winner on aggregate will advance to the final qualifying round, where they will face the winner between Nigeria and Senegal. Malawi last played a match four months ago when they beat South Sudan 3-1 on aggregate in the second preliminary round qualifier following a 2-0 win in first leg away and one-all draw at home in the second leg. In the squad, the coach has recalled 18 players that were part of the second preliminary round clashes against South Sudan last September.
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One of the players in the squad, Funny Moyo said the morale is high in camp and they will do their best to win in all two legs against Guinea Bissau. “Camping has started well and the morale is high in the squad. The game ahead is important because it will put us on the world map. We are looking for nothing less than wins in our matches,” she said.
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