Ahead of the upcoming 2024 WAFCON and Olympic Qualifiers, Copper Queens Head Coach Bruce Mwape says the technical bench has set an objective in the upcoming friendlies to work on the team’s defense.
The Copper Queens have started preparing for next year’s WAFCON and Olympic Qualifiers after reuniting for the first time since their debut World Cup appearance, which Spain won at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
While keeping in mind that the team’s defense has only produced four clean sheets in 12 games this season, preparation will be just as important as the primary qualifying route. The 2022 WAFCON bronze medalist scored nine goals and allowed 30 goals this season.
“If you look at the way we played at the World Cup tournament, in the first two games we conceded a lot of goals. This time we want to make sure that when it comes to defending, we defend as a team and our backline should always be solid so that we don’t concede goals like we did during the World Cup,” he said, via FAZ TV.
Mwape is aiming for success when the Copper Queens take on the Atlas Lionesses this evening in the first of their two international friendlies.
“It’s actually important that we get good results because it will help the team move up on the CAF-FIFA Rankings. We need to move to get into the top five in Africa,” he said.
“I think these are the kind of friendly teams that we want to play with when it comes to preparation for the of the qualifying games because these are high-profile games, he added.
“No foreign Copper Queens for COSAFA”—Mwape
Mwape has hinted that he does not intend to use foreign-based players during the upcoming COSAFA Championship in South Africa next month.
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“For the COSAFA, we are picking a team of which will consist of local players. Foreign players will not be there. It’s up to them [local players] to prove that they can also get a place on the senior national team.”
It is also understood that the Cosafa championship will be played outside the FIFA international window which means foreign-based stars may not be released by their respective clubs.
