Brave Warriors preparations for 2019 AFCON on course

WINDHOEK, 15 AUG  – Brave Warriors’ preparations for their 2019 Africa Nations Cup Qualifier against Zambia on 08 September at the Sam Nujoma Stadium are progressing well.
Speaking to Nampa on the side-lines during the teams’ training session on Monday Brave Warriors Coach Ricardo Mannetti explained: “I am impressed by the competitiveness of the local based players who are currently in camp. There are two groups currently, with one group (60%) doing extremely well, while the other group (40%) is not.”

He said the group that is not doing well in its fitness and conditioning exercises had missed several training sessions due to injuries and other commitments.
“While I cannot say we are where we are supposed to be, we are working hard to make them catch up within three weeks. Our opponents Zambia are currently in season and some of their players are from Europe and South Africa (SA),” he added.

With less than a month before that crucial game, the Brave Warriors are training twice a day on some days, with the coach saying they will start focusing on the tactical aspect of the game in the coming days.
The coach who still has to include SA based players to his training camp, said he was impressed with the fact that quite a number of those players are getting game time with their clubs.

“The first division league will kick off next week or so in SA where we have about four or five players there, so the more game time these players get, the fitter they become and the better the chances of us performing well against Zambia,” Mannetti stressed.
This news agency observed at the training that Hendrick Somaeb and Panduleni Halleluja Nekundi sat out the afternoon sessions due to injuries while Itamunua Keimuine was absent.
Pinehas Willem tore his Achilles heel and will be out for three months, effectively ruling him out of the tie.
After the game with Zambia, Namibia will play against Mozambique between 8 to 16 October and will host Guinea between 12 to 20 November 2018.
Currently, Mozambique heads up Group K with three points, with Guinea also on three in second place, followed by Namibia and Zambia on zero points after losing their opening games.
The Group winner and runner-up will qualify for the 2019 AFCON to be hosted by Cameroon in June and July 2019. – NAMPA