Marinica happy with Flames performance
Flames head of technical panel Mario Marinica says the national team is close to meeting the standard of play he is looking for ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) finals in Cameroon next week.
The Romanian made the statement during a virtual press briefing following the Flames 2-1 victory over Comoros in an international friendly match at the Abdallah al Faisal Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Friday evening.
This was the Flames first strength testing match at the ongoing 10-day pre- Afcon camp in the Middle East country, where he is demanding the players to adapt to his philosophy of fast-flowing football.
Marinica said he wants the players to think fast, act fast and move fast with the ball.
Said the coach: “The players that have been selected [in the final squad] are close enough to represent what I am looking for. All the players are hard-working and are willing to learn not only the philosophy but they also have talent. We have the height, speed and hard work and determination.
“I am happy that we have players that are willing to work extremely hard and are proud to represent their country.”
On what Malawians should expect from the Flames at the continental showpiece, Marinica said he still stands by his previous comment that nobody should expect the sun and the moon because adapting fully to the philosophy takes time.
“It is a long process; we are changing. I hope that some of these players you see today will represent a new generation as 10 years from now they will probably still be wearing the Flames badge. This is not only because of the players we have but also the coaching system, education and grass roots development.
“So I wouldn’t expect the results straight away. However, what I am confident you are going to see is more attack, a very solid defence and players that are hard working and determined to make the country proud.”
On Friday, the Flames scored twice in the first half through South Africa-based strikers Frank Gabadinho Mhango and Khuda Muyaba while Comoros had their consolation through Faiz Matoour’s penalty.
Mhango scored the Flames first goal in the 25th minute through a direct free kick from the edge of the box before turning provider when he dispossessed a Comoros defender to set up Muyaba, who doubled the scoreline in the 39th minute with a strike from a tight angle.
Comoros got one back from the spot-kick after John Banda fouled Matoour in the box in the 43rd minute.
Marinica made three changes at half-time, pulling out Banda and debutants midfielder Zebron Kalima and defender Lawrence Chaziya for Fransisco Madinga, Peter Cholopi and Charles Petro respectively.
Although both sides failed to score in the second half, Comoros dominated play as they forced Malawi on the back-foot on a number of occasions.
In spite of that, the scoreline was the best result for the Flames in 2021 as they managed to score twice for the first time in 11 games. Prior to the latest result, they last scored two goals in July 2021 when they settled for a two-all draw against Zimbabwe at the Cosafa Cup in South Africa.
VOL
