It all engines go – Brave Warriors face Chipolopolo in Casablanca
With both sides expected to ring changes to their starting line-up with qualification to the quarterfinals confirmed, there will be no love lost as Namibia and Zambia faceoff on Monday night, 21h00, local time, for the Group B top of the table clash at the 2018 Africa Nations Championship finals.
Zambia and Namibia are each on six points from two games, Zambia first due to a better goal difference and faceoff in the final Group B game on Monday night at the Mohammed V Stadium in Casablanca, to decide who finish on top and face either Morocco or Sudan from group A in the quarterfinals, and coach Ricardo Mannetti aims to avoid the home side Morocco who tops Group A.
“You want to avoid the host team Morocco and therefore we go for Sudan for us in the quarterfinals. Morocco is a free scoring team with very good players and they have the whole country behind them. So avoid them now and meet later,” he said.
The 2015 Cosafa winning coach further explained that the game against Zambia will be no friendly game.
We also want to win and go back to our base in Marrakech and so the game against Zambia will be huge. A Cosafa derby and both team will fight for a win. But we both in the next round and that is important as well. Both sets of players will be fighting for a good showing and a place in the starting line-up for the next stage and therefore it will a of more than pride for both national teams. Zambia should be tired of losing to us as we beat them at Cosafa in 2015 and then in the previous CHAN qualifiers in Windhoek before they won in Lusaka and won on penalties”, Ricardo Mannetti said.
Brave Warriors captain Ronald Ketjijere echoed his coach comments at the press conference held on Sunday afternoon.
“Like the coach said, Morocco are at home and they have the support and for now we would like to take on Sudan because it will be level playing ground but against a very strong team,” captain Ronald Ketjijere stated.
