Will ‘Papa’s’ kite land?

Things are happening so fast for Gerald Phiri Jnr. And if you are familiar with Malawi football love story with promising talent, the licence is granted for you to get excited as well as afraid in equal proportion.

On Saturday, the verdict of his performance is yours, but the fact is Phiri Junior earned his sixth cap when the Flames hosted Zimbabwe’s Warriors at the Kamuzu Stadium. Last Monday, he turned 22 while playing in Egypt; the land of the Biblical young Joseph.

So, in summary, he has been on trials with clubs LZS Potrowka in Poland and SuperSport United, South Africa. He boasts six caps, a goal in a practice match, a Cosafa man-of-the match award and a Cosafa Plate Division medal. All within two months.

The towering boy’s strengths are impeccable passing abilities, telling execution of set pieces, positional awareness and leadership potential. But big questions arise on whether this Phiri is not another kite in transit to nowhere.

The list of football talent that faded so fast is so long that it is unbelievable. Robin Ngalande, so good he shared the field with Manchester United Spanish goalkeeper David de Gea, the BBC called him the next Samuel Eto’o, yet now he can’t make the starting XI at modest Ajax Cape Town.

His flagging fortunes were evident when he became the Cosafa Cup’s only substitute to be substituted again for Bashir Maunde when Malawi held on to beat Zambia 1-0 in plate final.

Frank GabadinhoMhango was so dominant at Bloemfontein Celtic in his debut season, getting top scorer and best player award while also being nominated for Premier Soccer League (PSL) rookie of the year. A double against Chad, just cemented what fans wanted to know. The same fans booed him at the Kamuzu Stadium as he hardly strung a pass.

You know what happened to Chiukepo Msowoya and Grant Lungu; gems who never realised their full potential. These examples are so reminder to the question of whether Phiri would be another sad example of talent wasted.

Phiri Junior is good though not very exceptional. Head down, quiet and nerveless, yet feeble, too mobile, lacks the stamina that is a must-have in modern game. His heading is not perfect for his height.

The Polish club, according to his Zimbabwe Caps United official Joel Makuvire, also sent him back to Harare after month-long trials with the fourth-tier side for the same reasons of physical weaknesses.

“They were happy with the level of his skill; technically he impressed. But he is still lacking in fitness. Nevertheless, he will have another shot in December. His trial was not really about us looking for a deal,” Makuvire told Zimbabwe media in 2013.

“This was for his own enrichment, to get a feel of the way they train over there, appreciating how football is played in Europe. Hopefully, he will share that experience with his team-mates.”

With some fitness conditioning coaching, Phiri can easily get the required stamina. But there is more for young players to handle.

There is the social media and girls to handle. Mainstream media can also sometimes live in extremes—showering promising talent with unlimited superlatives on a sunny day and, hitting them hard on their rainy day.

Elliot Kay, managing director at The Coach with the Hat Training & Coaching Limited in England, observes that “many talented players… do not seem to break through and make it to the highest levels. A shift in attitude is what is necessary.”

Reason? “We all know that only skills are not enough, so the teams and the coaches should learn how to coach on attitude and not only skills.”

May be Phiri could be different. After-all, he comes from a close knit family. His father and mother have, from his early days playing in the then Arkay Plastics Premier Division for the South at Brave Warriors, always watched him play.

His former MDC United star father is also a man of a measured temperament. He is always very reluctant to comment on his career as a coach and about his son’s career.

“As a family, we are all happy for him. Sure, I have spoken to him of all what is happening and I have told him to focus on his game. Again, he should not become big headed,” the father told SportsXtra when asked how he is ensuring his son walks on the straight and narrow.

In fact, the Azam Tigers coach only allowed him to get into competitive football once he was done with his secondary education and had received some vocational training.

Phiri Snr is a typical football person who believes in less talking and let the football do the rest. May be that could be the difference with the guidance that Phiri Jnr might receive and one which his peers have always lacked due to absence of players’ managers locally.

May be this lanky Phiri, who one coach at Cosafa Cup observes, floats on the pitch, will not be another kite that will soon disappear on the football horizon. To nowhere.