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Mali coach Diané Nouhoum is cautious that his facet have to have the suitable mindset forward of their opening recreation in opposition to Angola within the TotalEnergies CHAN 2022 on Monday, 16 January on the Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran, Algeria.
The Eagles, who’re making their fifth CHAN look, have solely misplaced their opening recreation as soon as and that was at their debut version in 2011 once they misplaced 1-0 to Côte d’Ivoire consequently failing to make it out of the group phases.
They’ve since gone on to win twice 2-1 in opposition to Nigeria (2014) and 1-0 in opposition to Burkina Faso (2020) and drawn as soon as 2-2 in opposition to Uganda in 2016 and have established that how they begin the match goes a great distance in giving them path on how far they’ll go within the match.
In 2016 and 2020, they reached the CHAN ultimate falling to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Morocco in that order however this respectable report which ought to ideally give Nouhoum and his facet confidence has been dismissed by Nouhoum who as a substitute desires the Eagles to remain targeted on their opener in opposition to Palancas Negras.
“It’s not straightforward in Mali as a result of each season, we lose gamers who transfer to different leagues in Africa and Europe, so our CHAN workforce adjustments so much. Now, we’re again to rebuilding a brand new workforce however what we’ve got achieved by qualifying to come back right here, we’ve got registered some good outcomes,” Nouhoum stated within the pre-match press convention with content material on his face.
“For me as a coach, we will play one recreation at a time, and we should play to win. Even when we’ve got much less expertise, we should do the easiest that we will to ship.”
Regardless that Nouhoum doesn’t have the consolation of your entire workforce from the 2020 version that had been finalists, the Malian tactician will look in the direction of the eight returning gamers that can present expertise to the newer faces.
Amongst them are primary alternative goalkeeper Germain Berthe in addition to his counterpart Aboubacar Doumbia, defenders Barou Sanogo and Mamadou Doumbia in addition to the midfield trio of Makan Samabali, Aly Sissoko and Ibourahima Sidibe and ahead Moussa Kone.
Samabali informed the media that, “We’re mentally able to play an excellent match tomorrow and we will do our greatest. We did nicely after we completed third in Cameroon two years in the past and we wish to construct on that have to do even higher.”
*The Mali and Angola recreation can be performed at 1600hrs GMT.
