What U-17 World Cup-bound South Africa learned from Malawi

South Africa under-17 football team assistant coach Thabo Mngomeni has shared lessons from their 3-0 victory over their Malawian counterparts in Blantyre on Sunday.

Amajimbos took on the Young Flames at Kamuzu Stadium in a final preparatory match for the Under-17 FIFA World Cup finals in Qatar. Luke Hendrix was among the scorers for the visitors during the game with the hosts scoring an own goal.

In a post-match interview, Mngomeni said their target was not the victory, but the team’s overall performance ahead of the World Cup finals.

“For us, it was fruitful. The Malawian federation helped us to achieve what we wanted as we are preparing for the World Cup,” the Orlando Pirates legend explained.

“All the things we wanted to see and adapt were there. It was easy to point and rectify [the areas], so I am happy with the result and performance of both teams.”

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Mngomeni was elusive on their target at the World Cup, saying they did not have enough friendlies.

“We didn’t have much time to prepare as our last game was in April, and that is why I keep on saying that we are very grateful to the Malawi federation for giving us this opportunity,” the assistant coach said.

“We were not looking for a result. We were looking at how we were playing, and the opponent gave us the things we wanted to see…the friendly helped us to adjust all the areas that we wanted to work on.”

The Qatar-bound Amajimbos faced the Young Flames in a curtain-raiser for FCB Nyasa Big Bullets’ clash against rivals Mighty Wanderers. Wanderers won the game 3-0.

South Africa will leave for Qatar on Thursday. They were drawn in Group A which comprises Qatar, Italy and Bolivia at the tournament which gets underway on November 3.

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