Gilbert Chirwa spoke to the media on Thursday ahead of our TNM Super League match against Mighty Tigers at Kamuzu Stadium on Sunday.
The FCB Nyasa Big Bullets first assistant coach discussed the need for the team to recover from the defeat to Mighty Wanderers, expectations for the upcoming match, injuries, and more.
Below is the full transcript of Chirwa’s press briefing.
On the need for the team to bounce back from the derby loss
We are indeed playing Mighty Tigers on Sunday, a very strong team. We have been training, and the players are performing well. We have addressed most of the mistakes we made against Mighty Wanderers. We did not perform well, as many of our players were not in the game, which led to several errors. Consequently, we have been focusing on correcting these mistakes and are determined not to repeat them on Sunday. We understand the significance of this game, especially after losing three points just before the international break, and we need to pull up our socks to secure maximum points.
On whether the players were complacent against Wanderers
Considering their performance, I believe there was some complacency, and we have spoken to them about how football can be unpredictable. They are the same players delivering for us, yet at times they underperform. All we can do is return to the drawing board, analyze the match, and identify areas for improvement.
On Sunday’s opposition
From experience, it’s not only Tigers that brings tough competition; nearly every team that faces Bullets comes hard to make history. I know they may struggle against other teams, but when they play us, they raise their game. We are not underestimating them, as they are a strong team. Given that we are coming off a loss, we need to put in the effort to secure a win.
On whether the international break will negatively affect the team
I don’t believe it will, as the break has allowed us time to prepare and rectify our mistakes. The Players who were with the national team are back, though some of them are injured, like [Yankho] Singo and [Chikumbutso] Salima. We also have [Hassan] Kajoke and Clyde [Senaji] out with injuries, and we will have to give them maybe a week or so to recover and come back, but we have enough players to take their places and do the work.
Regarding Peter Banda’s probable return to action
We don’t want to rush him. This is his second week training with us [since he returned from injury], and he’s doing fine, showing his brilliance, and we believe we will feature him in the near future.
