Nobody is guaranteed a place in Flames starting line up, says Mtawali

Malawi national football team head coach Ernest Mtawali has warned all players that nobody is guaranteed a place in the starting line up.

He was responding to the recent public outburst by Flames and Platinum Stars midfielder Robert Ng’ambi who vented his anger on the coach after warming the bench for the entire 90 minutes during the two-all-draw in the 2017 Afcon qualifier against Swaziland a fort night ago.

Speaking during a press briefing at Chiwembe Technical Centre on Thursday morning, Mtawali said he will only call a player based on his form and discipline.

“Robert Ng’ambi is one of the best midfielder we have had in Malawi. He has been influential for the team and I called him because of his leadership skills and discipline. “I don’t want to talk about him but all I can say is that nobody is guaranteed a place in my first line up. Players have to fight for it,” he said.

He also added that the door is not shut for the dropped senior national team players. “The door is not shut. If a player is in good form, he will be called into the team,” continued Mtawali.

On his team’s preparations, the former Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder said new players like Fisd Wizard’s Levison Maganizo and Mighty Wanderers’s Kondwani Kumwenda and the rest of the players are performing well.

“Overall, the players are in a very good shape. I am very impressed with Levison Maganizo and Kondwani Kumwenda as well as Deus Mkutu. Their performance is very good and everything is going according to the plans,” he concluded.