China-based women’s football star Tabitha Chawinga says she expects stiff competition from her sister Temwa in the quest to retain the golden boot and Player of the Season awards.
Tabitha’s team Jiangsu Suning kick-starts its title defence campaign tomorrow against Hebei.
Said the 23-year-old prolific forward in an interview yesterday: “Of course, my ultimate goal is to help my team retain the league title, but individually, I would also love to retain the awards I won last season, especially the golden boot and Player of the Tournament.
“Having said that, I reckon it won’t be easy this time because everyone will be out to win them.
“The coming of Temwa will also hype-up the competition.
“I have a lot of respect for her because she is a star… She is very good player. So, yes. Let us see how it goes.”
Temwa, who will also be making her debut in the Chinese Women’s Superleague for Wuhan against Henan Jianye tomorrow, was not available for comment.
But she was quoted by BBC earlier in the week as having said: “Both of us will do our best to see who the best player is.”
She also expressed her appreciation to Tabitha for helping in getting her career started.
“My sister has been instrumental in my career progression.
“She, of course, made connections for me to leave Malawi to play abroad, but most importantly, she has always advised me to fight hard, to know what I want and to pursue it without listening to distracting people,” said Temwa.
