U-20 seek to end poor scoring record against Angola

They have scored one goal in three matches, but the road is not getting any easier.

The Malawi Under-20 national team, know that they must be razor sharp upfront when they face Angola in the 2019 Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) second round qualifier this afternoon or run the risk of elimination.

During the Junior Flames training session on Thursday at Bingu National Stadium, national team coach Ronny van Gunedgen, usually a calm figure, showed that  he is a man lurching between rage and frustration.

Each time the strikers missed clear-cut chances; he looked away in frustration or scratched his head in disbelief.

He let his frustration known at the end of that training session as he yelled: “When you are in the box, it is your responsibility to shoot!”

Coach Meke Mwase admitted that they are bothered by lack of goals but was hopeful that, for once, lady luck will smile at them.

“We have been working to solve attacking problems,” he said, “I just hope the goals will start coming.”

Before this match, Malawi secured a goalless draw against eSwathini (formerly Swaziland) in the preliminary qualifying round before managing a one-all draw and progression via away goal rule.

Last week, they could not manage to breach Zambia defence during a friendly match and consequently lost 0-1.

Angola were seeded, therefore, did not participate in the preliminary Afcon round. That, in itself, tells the story of their superiority.

In the region, they have reached the Cosafa Under-20 finals four times since 2000, a period which Malawi has made a single appearance in the final.

“We are not meeting an ordinary team. We must be at our best. Our target is to win,” Mwase, a former Flames defender acknowledges.

The responsibility to put the ball behind the net for Malawi rests in playmaker Peter Banda, Chinsinsi Maonga and Frank Chizuze.

Meanwhile, Angola coach Jose Silvestre Pele has said they are going into the match as underdogs because they played in the first round of the qualifiers.

“Malawi has had time to gel having played two competitive games against Swaziland. Since we were seeded it is almost like we have been docile,” he said.

Pele revealed that their key priority is to stop Malawi from dominating the match.

“They are playing at home so their mentality is to have more of the ball. This is what we will try to stop if we are to get a result from this encounter,” Pele said.