Warriors Ready For Harambee Stars - Mapeza
Warriors’ interim coach, Norman Mapeza, anticipates his players will maintain the same determined mindset they displayed against Zambia as they face the Harambee Stars of Kenya in the Four Nations Invitational Tournament final this Tuesday afternoon.
During the semi-final clash with Zambia last Saturday, the Warriors found themselves trailing 2-0 after just 24 minutes.
However, they rallied to secure a 2-2 draw and ultimately triumphed 6-5 in the penalty shootout.
Meanwhile, in the other semi-final, Kenya convincingly defeated Malawi with a resounding 4-0 victory.
Addressing the media, Mapeza expressed eagerness to take on Kenya, even though he admits to having limited knowledge about their team. He said:
It’s much about self-belief. It’s much about the group. It was not about individuals, but the whole group, and that is football.
Football is different from tennis. In tennis, you are always alone on the court.
But football is about collective effort and the guys showed that against Zambia and l am more than happy.
I am looking forward to the same mentality and the same approach when we face Kenya.
We last played Kenya some years ago. Coming to the rankings, l wasn’t looking much into that. I was concentrating much on club football so l wasn’t reading into FIFA rankings.
However, l last played against Kenya in the CECAFA Cup and it was years ago. They have changed. They were fantastic in their game two days ago.
The speed and the way they attacked with their wing play were solid, and we can look forward to an entertaining game against them. We are ready.
The tournament serves as a crucial component in the lead-up to the resumption of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in June.
When questioned about the Warriors’ matches post-tournament, Mapeza expressed uncertainty regarding his future as the national team’s head coach, given his current interim appointment.
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