Ernest Mtawali warns Gabadinho Mhango
Malawi national football team coach, Ernest Mtawali, has said he is concerned with the temperament of Flames striker Frank ‘Gabadinho’ Mhango during matches.
Gabadinho made his first appearance this season for Bloemfontein Celtic on Wednesday when he played for 56 minutes in 1-0 loss to Mamelodi Sundowns in a Premier Soccer League match in South Africa.
Gabadinho was shown a yellow card for a foul and, in a wild reaction, kicked one of the advertising boards at the newly-renovated Dr Rantlai Petrus Molemela Stadium.
He was eventually substituted for Mozambican Helder Pelembe in the 56th minute.
Mtawali said Gabadinho’s similar conduct in the 2018 Fifa World Cup preliminary round first leg match in Tanzania were worrying.
The coach said, Gabadinho who was regularly involved in scuffles with Tanzania players, could create a bad reputation.
“I spoke to him after the Tanzania match. I told him to cool down. I was disappointed with his attitude on Wednesday. I will sit down with him again so that he should change his attitude,” he explained.
“He definitely needs to change. He must understand that defenders are always going to be closing him down, but he has to react professionally just like other top players do. He has to control himself.”
Mtawali added that Gabadinho’s recent path could lead to stagnation of his career.
“If he does not change, he may lose focus and fail to perform. That may affect his selection to the national team. We want to see the old Gaba. We want to see him scoring goals and perform wonders,” he added.
Gabadinho has struggled to replicate his excellent first season form where he won both Absa Premiership and club awards.
His second season was injury-ridden and he rarely had any game – time until his return on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Flames captain Limbikani Mzava conceded a penalty when his club Mpumalanga Black Aces drew 2-2 against Robert Ng’ambi’s Platinum Stars.
Both players played the full match.
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