Head coach Wedson Nyirenda discusses recovery from the long Karonga trip, consecutive victories and clean sheets, the return to Dedza Stadium, Luanar Mitundu, attacking output, youth development, recruitment and the latest squad news.
Ahead of Sunday’s FDH Bank Premiership encounter against Luanar Mitundu at Dedza Stadium, FCB Nyasa Big Bullets head coach Wedson Nyirenda faced the media at his customary Thursday pre-match press conference in Blantyre.
Nyirenda reflected on the demanding trip to Karonga, where Bullets recorded a 1-0 victory last weekend, and explained how the technical team has managed the players ahead of a second successive league assignment away from home.
The Bullets coach also discussed the team’s improved organisation and collective performances, the lessons from our previous visit to Dedza, the title race, attacking output, youth development and recruitment before providing updates on George Chaomba, Chrispin Mapemba, Paul Master and Clever Kalambo.
Below is the full pre-match press conference.
Coach, another away assignment this weekend after the win in Karonga. How has the group responded in training this week?
First and foremost, I would like to congratulate the players who travelled to Karonga. It was a very long journey, and we managed to get that much-needed victory, which moved us into third position as we continue competing for the championship.
After returning, we gave the boys enough time to rest and managed their recovery in training.
The work we have done this week has been good for them, and I think they have recovered well.
We have now recorded back-to-back league victories and clean sheets. From your perspective, what has pleased you most about the team over these last two matches?
I think it is the organisation. We have improved so much in communication and in the way the defence is cooperating with the midfield.
All the departments are firing well. We are defending as a team and attacking as a team.
The goalkeeping department is also doing a very good job. Coach Rabson Chiyenda is a very serious man and deserves credit for the work he is doing.
I think we are looking good and we are looking ready.
We return to Dedza Stadium for the second time this season. What lessons can we take from our previous visit there as we prepare for a different opponent on Sunday?
I think the most important thing is to prepare the players mentally.
We are going back to the same venue where we lost, so it is the same environment and the same atmosphere we are going to face.
It is about changing the approach. I think our approach in the previous game was not good enough, but this time, looking at the way we are training, the boys have really lifted their spirits.
This will also be our second successive league match away from home. What will be important for us to manage well on Sunday?
We have to manage the players’ rest and recovery.
We had a very long journey to Karonga and back, which took a lot of energy from the players, and we have taken that into consideration with our programme.
The boys have rested well and I think they have recovered. That is very important because we have just been on the road and now we are travelling again in the same direction.
We needed to refresh them, give them enough rest and manage the volume of work.
Luanar are in their first season in the Premiership and have had a competitive opening round. What kind of challenge are you expecting from them on Sunday?
I have always said every fixture is a challenge.
We are playing a team that knows it is facing a big club. They are at home and they will throw everything at us.
It has not been easy playing away. Even the previous game in Karonga was difficult, but we came out with the result.
The character the players have shown now is giving us something positive. It is not going to be easy in any game we play from now, especially when we get into the second round. That is when the competition will become even tougher.
We have also seen decisive contributions coming from different areas of the team, with Ephraim Kondowe scoring the winner in Karonga. How encouraging is that as we move through the season?
I think we have had a lot of improvement in the way we are playing compared to before.
The boys have changed tremendously, and we have seen improvement in the way we go forward with the ball and the pace we are using.
Looking at young Misheck Billiat, he is giving us something special in terms of advancing forward. Yamikani Mologeni has already won three Player of the Match awards.
We also have the captain, Blessings Mpokera, leading the group, and we have seen Ephraim scoring goals for us. He had gone through a little drought, but now he has come back with that goal from Mologeni’s delivery.
I think there has been a lot of improvement. Like I have said, the players are getting better every day.
How important is it for Bullets to focus on our own performances rather than what the other title contenders are doing, especially with the first round coming to an end?
That is what I have always preached. You do not look at what others are doing.
Always look at your own house. See where it is leaking and where the windows are not okay. If you spend your time looking at your neighbour’s house, you are not going to take care of your own home properly.
Our own house is what we are looking at. What are we doing well? What can we improve?
We are not going to lose focus. We are looking at each game as it comes.
If you look at where we have come from and where we are now, there is a big difference. We are a team focused on something that we want to achieve.
With two games left before the end of the first round, how would you assess Bullets’ overall performance so far this season?
Not so bad.
I think we started slowly and on the back foot, but we have recovered now. We are getting better and the team has improved tremendously.
The players are very focused, and we plan to finish the first round at the top of the table, God willing.
Bullets have scored 15 goals in 13 league matches. Is the team’s attacking output a concern, and what are you doing to improve it?
If you have watched our games, we have been a very attacking team since I came.
It is the finishing that has not been at the level we want, so that is what we are working on.
We have been creating eight, 10 or even 13 chances. We are not talking about half-chances; we are talking about clear chances.
So it is not that the attacking play is not there. The chances are there. It is the finishing that we have to improve.
How satisfied are you with the squad?
We are still building.
I have always said scouting and recruitment are the only constant things in football. If you stop scouting and recruiting, then the team is dead.
Every day you have to scout and think about who is going to come in, at what point and in which position. Our scouting continues because we are still building this team.
Like I always say, I am not looking at a team that is only going to be champion in Malawi. We do not want to be local champions. We want to be champions in Africa.
Every day we are moving in that direction. We want to go where other people do not even think they can swim. That is where we want to go.
After promoting Kondwani Tebulo to the first team, how important is youth development to you, and are you also keeping an eye on talented young players from other clubs?
We need to balance this. We are a big team, so we need youngsters to come through and be promoted to the senior team because that encourages those coming behind them.
I have said before that we are not going to create traffic in the Reserves and youth categories. If a player is good, he is good. You have to give him a chance.
If he comes into the senior team and acquits himself well, you promote him there and then.
At the same time, this is not a small team. It is a big club and everyone wants results every day, so we have to balance developing players and bringing them into the fold while continuing to get results.
If we are not going to develop and promote those players, what are we going to gain from having the youth categories?
As I have said, we are also in the business of making money. The more players we develop ourselves, the more value we can create through player sales.
I believe that in a short time you will see some of these youngsters moving to bigger leagues elsewhere, and that will create a different scenario for the club in the years ahead.
Apart from developing and promoting players internally, are there players elsewhere in Malawi that you are monitoring?
There are many players doing well, but we cannot say much about that. We need to let everyone concentrate on what they are doing.
As I have said, it is part of the ongoing project. We are looking at everyone who is doing well, both within Malawi and outside.
A win on Sunday would give us three successive league victories. What do you want to see from the players to achieve that?
It is the approach. It is always the approach and the attitude on the pitch.
The aggression and the intensity of the game will also be important.
If we can put everything we are seeing in training onto the pitch, then I do not see any team stopping us.
What I saw in training this morning was very encouraging. We now have to replicate that on Sunday.
Lastly, Coach, what is the latest squad update on injuries and suspensions ahead of Sunday’s match?
George Chaomba is back. He is training full time. He trained yesterday and again today.
We still have Mapemba out. He has not started training yet, but the rest are okay. Everyone else is on the pitch and it is a full house.
What is the latest on Chrispin Mapemba following his surgery?
The boy was supposed to start light training this week, but the doctors still have one or two things to look at.
We cannot force it. It is a long-term injury, so we should be careful with him.
What about Paul Master?
Paul Master is still out. He is still nursing his injury.
Clever Kalambo missed last weekend’s match against Karonga United through suspension and is now available again. How much of a boost is his return?
I am glad to say that the boy has come back in very high spirits.
I was telling somebody at training today that he is training as though he played last weekend. He is still looking very strong, very good and very sharp.
I think we will have more firepower in Dedza.
