Chipolopolo Boys striker Patson Daka has emphasized the importance of the four-nation friendly tournament that is underway in Malawi.
The tournament kicked off on Wednesday when Malawi Under-20 played Zimbabwe Under-20.
Zambia is set to play Zimbabwe tomorrow at 14:00 HRS CAT. at the Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe.
Hosts Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Kenya are the other nations that are competing in the senior tournament.
During the pre-match press conference, Daka stated that Zambia is not treating the matches as friendly, but rather as opportunities to learn valuable lessons in preparation for the two crucial 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Morocco and Tanzania in June.
“We know how important this competition is for us and everyone else,” he said. “So we have not come here just to have fun but to make sure that every game that we play makes a huge difference in our way forward because we have a target.”
He continued: “We are not looking at it as friendly games; we are taking this competition seriously and just hope we are going to get all the positives we can from this tournament.”
Daka and Grant are upbeat
When asked what fans should expect from him, Daka said teamwork will be key for the team to achieve positive results.
“It’s not just about me; this is a collective sport, and everyone on our team is very important. We are all just here to make sure that we get the best of ourselves that we can,” the Leicester City striker stated.
Meanwhile, head coach Avram Grant stated that the team’s objective is to win the match while also preparing for the World Cup qualifiers.
“For us, it is the last preparation before the qualification for the World Cup. First, we want to win, but second, we need to shape the things that we need to be better at,” Grant said.
“We want to show that we have a good team and continue with the progress that we showed in the last year.”
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