Nyamilandu hits back at Kinnah

• ‘He is frustrated at not being given 2nd chance’

Football Association of Malawi (FAM) president Walter Nyamilandu has said former Flames coach Kinnah Phiri’s recent outbursts are coming out of frustration for not being accorded a second chance.

Kinnah blasted FAM for its decision to hire a foreign coach and described the association as “a bunch of failures” who have become clueless on how to turn around the Flames’ fortunes.

However, reacting to the Flames legend’s tough talk, the FAM president said: “As an interested party, he is obviously aggrieved that he won’t be given a second chance. So, I understand his frustration.

“He had his time and we have lots of fond memories about his success. Unfortunately, his full potential was exploited and he reached his limit. Notwithstanding his negative comments, we have lots of respect for him.

“The Flames couldn’t progress so as to realise our ambitions as a nation and we had to move on.”

He also said the move to go for an expatriate coach does not mean that local coaches have been completely disregarded.

“We intend to build the capacity of other local coaches to take over the national team in future from a foreign coach that will be identified.

“The foreign coach will help in grooming the locals, it is not like we have dumped them,” he said.

In an interview with Zodiak Broadcasting Station (ZBS) last week, Kinnah tore into FAM and defended the local coaches, saying they are not failures but rather it is the FAM leadership that has failed.

“Walter and his administration are the ones who are failures, but I have no grudge against Walter,” he said.

“To say there is no local coach who can coach the national team is not right and I am against people who don’t appreciate the good things and works that others do.”

Kinnah guided the Flames to their second Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon)qualification in 2010. Ironically, the first coach to achieve that feat in 1984, the late Henry Moyo, was also a local coach.

On his part, National Football Coaches Association (NFCA) general secretary Benjamin Kumwenda said while they would love to have a local coach, “but FAM is the employer and the decision on who to hire is its responsibility.”

He said: “And if they [FAM] feel that they have given us [local coaches] a chance and we have failed then we need to respect their decision.

“Suffice to say all the local coaches that are considered good and qualified such as Young Chimodzi, Kinnah, Jack Chamangwana and Ernest Mtawali have been tried.”