Temwa tipped to become continental star

Malawi’s China-bound women’s football export Temwa Chawinga has topped the list of potential African women football stars in the 2020 season by the world’s largest online football publication Goal.com.

The international association football news website has described the 21-year-old national women football team forward as an emerging Malawian that teams on the continent will look to contain “because of her impressive finishing ability”.

She has topped the top-five list that also has Anam Imo (Nigeria/ Rosengard), Charlene Meyong (Cameroon/LouvesMinproff), LozaAbera (Ethiopia/Birkirkara) and Barbara Banda (Zambia/Logrono).

The publication states: “She [Temwa] could be a huge factor in her Swedish [second-tier league] side’s [Kvarnsvedens IK] top flight promotion bid in 2020, as well as her country’s maiden qualification push for the 2020 African Women’s Cup of Nations.”

Chawinga, who has since joined her elder sister and Jiangsu Suning star Tabitha in the Chinese top-flight league after signing a year-long contract with Wuhan, said she is humbled by the praise and she will do her best to meet the world’s expectations.

“It is a great honour to be recognised as one of the continent’s potential stars. This even motivates me to up my game as I start a new lease of life with my new team in China,” she said.

Although Kvarnsvedens IK finished seventh in Swedish second-tier league last season, Temwa finished as the league’s second top-scorer with 35 goals in 28 games. Her goals included four hat-tricks. She was just a goal behind the eventual golden boot winner.

The Scorchers’ prolific forward shot into international limelight in 2017 after scoring 59 goals in 57 matches in her debut season for Kvarnsvedens.

Before turning professional, Temwa had been winning the golden boot award almost every season in the domestic league.

National Women’s Football Association (NWFA) chairperson Suzgo Ngwira was all praises for the young women football gem, who is slowly but surely following the footsteps of her elder sister, who reclaimed the golden boot in the Chinese league last season and inspired Suning FC to its first league title in years.

“Temwa deserves the praises because her star has always been on the rise. We are proud of her,” she said.