Junior Flames held
Malawi Under-20 national team compromised their 2015 African Youth Championship campaign with a come-from-behind 1-1 draw with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)’s Cubs at Kamuzu Stadium on Saturday.
Whether it was stage fright, pressure of playing in front of a demanding home crowd, or sheer complacency, the first leg, final qualifying round result compromises heavily the Junior Flames’prospects of a seat at the 2015 African Youth Championship finals in Senegal.
The away second leg on the weekend of May 24 2014 would surely require something extra from Malawi against the opposition that hardly loses at home.
The overall winner of the two legs will qualify for the eight-team finals from 14 groups slated for March 8 to 22 2015.
It took 79 minutes for Malawi right-back Suwedi Limbani of Epac FC to rescue the game from the Cubs’ jaws of defeat, curling to the top right from range. He met Chawanangwa Kawonga’s square ball and cancelled out the visitors’ Christy Manzinga’s 70th minute opener.
Spotting Rumba music artists-such as punky haircut, the Angres’ FC forward Manzinga run onto a long counter-attacking pass that for once breached Malawi’s Miracle Gabeya-led otherwise organised defence, to stun the wasteful hosts. DRC goalkeeper Kileb Tibolia Linneker celebrated the goal by leaping forward while seated like a frog.
It was a deserved punishment to the Junior Flames who started the game like a house on fire bombarding the opponents goal, then fizzling out with showboating, passing from the back to front, then back again with no shot on target from range.
So dominant were the coach Ernest Mtawali boys after 30 minutes, they took two corners, four free kicks and five shots on target against just one shot on target and no corner let alone free kick for the bigger and taller Cubs.
It was clear, DRC were here obsessed with nothing else but not conceding as they attacked with one long ball to either Manzinga who tried to attack from the wide areas and pick Robert Muloko with a long diagonal ball in the box.
Thankfully, Malawi defence kept its shape, but once the build-up started from the back, it took too many slow passes going forward, thereby allowing DRC shaky defence and Linneker time to regroup. There was simply no pressing.
Disappointing left-winger Dalitso Sailesi should have punished DRC in one moment when he connected from a rebound off the post, but he unbelievably skied his shot to sum up this goalless first-half.
No wonder barely after two minutes into the second-half, Mtawali dragged out Sailesi for Ernest Tambe; then Matias Nyirenda and Isaac Mwale who showed flashes of brilliance, for Abraham Kamwendo and Wongani Kuchisanga respectively.
The substitutions injected some life into Malawi attack resulting in Kawonga, who lacked a twin-strikers’ chemistry with Khumbo Ng’ambi upfront, to create the leveler that attracted a huge applause.
But by then DRC were increasingly feeling at home, bossing the midfield and threatening Malawi’s goal. Malawi’s keeper Brighton Munthali had to, more than once, keep out DRC’s bullets with telling one-handed instinctive saves. Malawi also drew 1-1 with Botswana in the preliminary round, but managed a brave away 2-1 win.
After the game, DRC coach Otis Ngoma could only say no “tu parle Francais (I speak French only) whereas Mtawali insisted that they can upset the tables, adding “we never give up, football is football. We can score away; otherwise, we gave them the game.”
Malawi Under-20 squad: Brighton Munthali, Dalitso Sailesi (Ernest Tambe), Miracle Gabeya, Suwedi Limbani, Boston Kabango, Matias Nyirenda (Abraham Kamwendo), Isaac Mwale (Wongani Kuchisanga), Chawanangwa Kawonga, Khumbo Ng’ambi, Stanley Sanudi, Isaac Kaliyati
DRC: Tibolia Linneker, Diakiese Jordan, Djany Ntoto, Yannick Batenelo, Yanick Mulenda, Nathan Konda, Illunga Tardelle, Miche Miche, Bokaila Issey, Manzinga Christy (Matondo Fabrice), Victor Mbelu.
