Flames coach laments Afcon preps delays
Flames coach Patrick Mabedi has opened up on his frustrations over 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) Group L Qualifiers preparations delays, saying time is not on their side.
Malawi is expected to host Burundi at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe on September 5 before facing Burkina Faso away five days later. The Flames will also take on Senegal away on October 7 and at home on October 15.
“We haven’t started anything yet we are so close to the games and there are a number of areas we need to work on,” Mabedi said.
Apart from the local camping, the coach said he would have loved to have an international friendly for the local-based players to gel with their foreign colleagues and build combinations.
Initially, the coach proposed August 12 to 25 as dates for camping, but the proposal was not approved.
On when the Flames will start the preparations, Football Association of Malawi (FAM) first vice-president Christopher Kuyera referred the matter back to the coach.
“Ask the coach about his plan,” said Kuyera, who is also chairperson of FAM’s technical committee.
Football analyst Parry Chinyama yesterday said the Flames need ample time for camping because although Fifa provides at least five days for national teams to prepare for international matches, such an arrangement does not help teams such as Malawi where proper cohesion and coordination of players take time.
“If a coach comes up with his training programme, it has to be respected because he is the one who knows how technically prepared his charges should be,” he said.
“The moment the coach is not given what he wants as regards preparations, you create a room for him to have excuses if the team fails to perform. We are preparing to fail because we cannot leave the coach to do things that are outside his plan.”
