Flames can beat Nigeria without coach—Osman

Former national team coach Yasin Osman believes the Flames can win their away World Cup qualifier against Nigeria even without a coach as long as they get better incentives.

Osman said this in reaction to Football Association of Malawi’s (FAM) decision to pledge a K3.5 million bonus to newly recruited expatriate coach Tom Saintfiet if the team beats the Super Eagles this September.

He said the monetary offer could have been directed to the players to motivate them ahead of the crucial match whose victory will set the Flames on the path to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

“Coaches do not play; they just direct. If the K3.5 million were directed at the players to share, I could see them beating the Nigerians even without the help of a coach. Why should a coach be promised millions of kwachas as game bonus when the players get peanuts?” he wondered.

Osman also said the offer could create a rift between the coach and the players.

“Sometimes we have to be careful with the offers we make to our national team coaches without considering the welfare of the players. What if the players agree that ‘guys if we win we will make the coach richer and we will remain poor, so let us lose this match’ who would we blame?” he said.

Meanwhile, Flames’ captain Joseph Kamwendo told BBC Sport that they would have loved to share the money among them.

Kamwendo was quoted as saying it is an insult for Saintfiet to get a K3.5 million bonus for a win when they will give the players only K30 000 each.

“Why don’t they [FAM] make such offers to players? Why should we continue to have our services not appreciated yet they are ready to splash out huge sums of money to one person?

“We’ve been fighting for an increase in game bonuses and allowances for a long time but FAM ignored us,” he told BBC.

Meanwhile, Saintfiet told the press upon his arrival few days ago that he is not in Malawi for money, but to make sure the Flames earn their historic appearance at the global soccer event.