Sunday shot

Flames have completed cycle

To most, the obsession is on what the Flames must do to offset the 2-0 deficit incurred in Ghana into a three-margin win on October 13 and rescue this 2013 Africa Cup of Nations cause that appears lost.

But even if the Flames are to spring a surprise, which seems very unlikely, and sneak to the South Africa finals, such a feat must never be allowed to mask the obvious Flames’ shortcomings.

Never should celebrations of one-off results blur the larger picture as was the case when the Flames rode their luck all the way to 2010 Nations Cup finals in Angola.

In my opinion, the Flames are operating on an old football software that needs replacement. Every team has its cycle and the Flames have reached theirs. It is time to think long term and bear the blunt of rebuilding.

It is time for Kinnah Phiri to stop wasting time talking about biased ‘officiation’ and construct his own team. If he can.Yes, FAM has to readjust its unrealistic targets of Nations Cup and World Cup qualification.

The squad’s DNA which Kinnah and his predecessors Stephen Constantine, the late Burkhard Ziese, Michael Hennigan, Alan Gillet and Kim Splidsboel inherited, has run its full course. It is on its denouncement.

The team that has phased out was built around captain Peter Mponda who represented everything good about Malawi football. Class, leadership and efficiency all wrapped into one.

Mponda and the likes of Esau Kanyenda, Fischer Kondowe and Allan Kamanga were the best from the class which Alex Masanjala and Manfred Hoener groomed between 1996 and 1999 with qualification to the Africa Youth Championship as the peak.

Once the leader Mponda was identified from this group, it was easy to mesh them with other gems from the Under-17 that produced the likes of Swadick Sanudi, then came the next group of James Sangala, Moses Chavula, Joseph Kamwendo and Robert Ng’ambi.

In every team rebuilding, there are some few others who come from nowhere and join the project. The likes of Russel Mwafulirwa, Dave Banda, Chiukepo Msowoya and now Gabadinho Mhango burst outside the development structures to be part of the project.

The danger is that most players who have never gone through proper developmental stages, hardly last the distance. I fear for Gabadinho!

Proof that the Flames are on a steep anti climax is in abundance.

Malawi failed to get a place at the 2012 Nations Cup finals despite not losing in eight games of six draws and two wins. This campaign? Two losses and win. Downward spiral.

When you have Atusaye Nyondo being forced to play as a targetman, then you understand Kinnah’s desperation. Robin Ngalande and Gabadinho are on learning curves.

In fact, by 2008, Kinnah should have developed a pool of strikers to understudy Kanyenda and Mwafulirwa.

But even when leading comfortably against the likes of Djibouti, Kinnah was too afraid to introduce the new generation. Now with Kanyenda and Mwafulirwa gone, the coach is left with little options. Poor management of transition.

If Kinnah wants a big targetman then let him, for once, give faith in discarded big and powerful strikers such as Sankhani Nyirenda and Zicco Mkanda instead of playing Nyondo to his weakness.

After all, Nyirenda and Mkanda were deemed good enough to represent Malawi at junior national team levels. Again, the duo would offer a short term solution. Problems might also soon appear in midfield.

The midfield might on paper look strong, but there is serious need for an injection of new blood of creative players, including wingers.

Kinnah has not replaced Kondowe and Joseph Kamwendo, who have outgrown the wings. I also doubt there is worthwhile replacement for Hellings Mwakasungula.

At the back, the left back position has badly lacked consistent understudies for Moses Chavula.

As a long term strategy, the bulk of the 2009 Under-17 team must be part of this reconstruction project joined on the way by the current junior side participating in the Africa Youth Championship and others picked along the way.

In the next three years, the Under-17 should remain active in all international competitions. Since most players reduce their ages by, at least, three years; investing in Under 17s would guarantee FAM certainty that it has players genuinely aged 20 or thereabout.

For the project to succeed, John Kaputa must work hand in hand with Kinnah. Otherwise, thinking about the Ghana game only smack lack of foresight.

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