The battle for the TNM Super League championship has taken a new twist after Silver Strikers Coach Peter Mponda engaged in a mind-battle when he downplayed Mighty Mukuru Wanderers’ title bid.
Mponda made the remarks after his charges sweated to overcome Kamuzu Barracks 1-0 at Silver Stadium on Sunday to restore their seven-point gap lead over the Nomads.
“I do not think there is any team that is giving us pressure, if it were [FCB Nyasa Big] Bullets, we could say ‘yes, these guys will come on us’ because they have done it before, coming from behind, but I do not think Wanderers will catch us,” Mponda said after his side earned a hard-fought victory over the Yellow Submarines.
However, Wanderers Coach Meck Mwase ignored Mponda’s remarks.
“We will not focus on what he is saying but we will concentrate on our games, taking a match as it comes,” Mwase, who has been handed a permanent job at Wanderers, said.
Interestingly, Wanderers Chief Executive Officer Panganeni Ndovi felt otherwise, brushing off Mponda’s remarks, saying Silver fear the Nomads.
“The fact that the coach is recognising Wanderers in the title race proves the fact that though they are leaders in the current season, they are looking over their shoulders in the title race and definitely fearing Wanderers.
“There is still a lot of football to play and anything can happen. We should watch what happens as the games progress,” Ndovi said.
Meanwhile, football analysts feel that tension, fear and pressure are slowly building up.
Former Flames attacker Jimmy Zakazaka, who played for the big three teams, said much as Mponda might be under pressure, he has ignited a mind battle to divert attention.
“At this moment, pressure is mounting high. Peter [Mponda] has started a mind game to confuse the opponents and it will be an interesting title run-up as both teams have chances of winning the title. Seven points is not a huge gap but with good planning, dedication and will power to win matches, it can be enough to win the race,” Zakazaka said.
Another analyst Julius Mithi felt that Mponda was playing mind games to hide his fears.
“A few weeks ago, the gap was big and now it has been reduced to only seven points, which is simply two losses and a draw. This reason is enough for Silver to worry about.
“Wanderers are a big team, enjoying good form at the moment, and I do not see Silver winning this league,” Mithi said.
Currently, Silver top the 16-member log table with 48 points, seven ahead of Wanderers, having played the same number of games—20 each.
Unbeaten Silver have scored 40 goals, conceding 29 times, while the Nomads have scored 42 goals against 32 conceded.
Silver struggled to beat KB but Mike Mtonyo’s own goal was enough to make the difference.
On the contrary, Wanderers cruised to a comfortable victory when they thrashed relegation threatened Baka City 10-0 at Kamuzu Stadium, with Isaac Kaliati scoring five goals, to start bossing the goal-scorers chart with 14 goals.
