Govt assures Kinnah’s contract renewal

Malawi Government on Sunday said it will extend Flames coach Kinnah Phiri’s contract after being satisfied with his performance.

Youth and Sports Minister Enock Chakufwa Chihana also said the contracts of Kinnah’s deputy Young Chimodzi and technical adviser Jack Chamangwana, who doubles as FAM technical director, will also be renewed

The news could not have come at any better time than barely a day after the Flames qualification into the second and final round of 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers after beating Chad 2-0.

“Our position as government is that we will renew the contracts of the national coach, his deputy as well as the technical adviser because we have been satisfied with their performance,” said Chihana.

But the minister insisted that the decision to renew the contracts has not come about because of the Flames 2-0 win over Chad.

“It should be noted that even with meagre resources, the coach and his backroom staff have tried their best to turn around the fortunes of the team. We have confidence in all the three tacticians.

“On top of that, I had a meeting with the players after the Chad game at Hotel Victoria and they threw their weight behind the coach and his backroom staff. In fact, they were chanting ‘Mourinho! Mourinho!’ in reference to the coach and that shows there is a good working relationship between the playing staff and their coach which is vital,” said Chihana.

He also said the crucial factor is that the coach is building a new team.

“The other thing is that unlike expatriate coaches who failed to deliver even after coming up with several demands, Kinnah has managed to improve the performance of the team without setting conditions,” he said.

Kinnah, whose contract expires at the end of this month,  could not be reached for comment.

FAM president Walter Nyamilandu recently said the association had recommended the trio’s contract extension.