His stunning performance yesterday earned him Player of the Match accolade
* As defending champions Nyasa Big Bullets secure a 2-0 victory over Mzuzu City Hammers at Kamuzu Stadium
* That catapulted them to second place on the log table ahead of this afternoon’s Silver Strikers v Mighty Wanderers
* I spotted the goalkeeper [Eddie Jamu] was out of his line and I had to think very quickly before hitting the ball with power
By Duncan Mlanjira
Midfielder Patrick Mwaungulu, who was voted TNM Super League 2023 Player of the Season, celebrated his 22nd birthday yesterday when he scored his third consecutive goal of the 2024 title campaign straight from a corner kick as Nyasa Big Bullets secured a 2-0 victory over Mzuzu City Hammers at Kamuzu Stadium.
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The victory earned the defending champions a total of 13 points that catapulted them to second place on the log table but ahead of this afternoon’s clash between leaders Silver Strikers and 4th-placed Mighty Wanderers to be played at Silver Stadium.
But, meanwhile, The People’s Team — who are eyeing their 7th consecutive TNM Super League title — can revel on the achievement by Mwaungulu, whose performance yesterday earned the Player of the Match.
In an interview with club media, after his stunning goal straight from the corner kick, Mwaungulu said: “I had no doubts that the ball was going in — I spotted the goalkeeper [Eddie Jamu] was out of his line and I had to think very quickly before hitting the ball with power.
“The moment I kicked the ball, my gut feeling was positive and I wasn’t surprised to see the ball inside the net.”
The sensational midfielder, who also claimed the FDH Bank Cup 2023 Player of the Tournament, is also the first to win the Player of the Month accolade this season and commenting on the achievement, he told : “I am not looking at this game only — my target is to continue pushing and improving so that I can give the best of my abilities to my team.
The FDH Bank Cup 2023 Player of the Tournament
“It will not be an easy season but we strive to do well. We can overcome the challenges we’ve been encountering this season — we will get better, he is quoted as saying, adding that it was expected that teams would be coming very hard on The People’s Team after winning all domestic silverware last season — starting with season opener FAM NBS Charity Shield, the FDH Bank Cup 2023, Airtel Top 8 and the ultimate TNM Super League 2023 title.
“It’s something we anticipated because every team will be coming hard on us to prove a point since we won everything last season — it won’t be easy, but we are the champions.
“We’ve done this before and we will fight to the end for our crown. As players, we will try our level best to collect points regardless of the circumstances at hand.”
The midfielder has now accumulated four goals and provided one assist in six league matches in this new campaign, joining Silver Strikers duo of Binwell Katinji and Adiel Kaduya; Civil Service United’s Emmanuel Jnr Saviel; Creck Sporting’s George Chiomba and Isaac Msiska of Mzuzu City Hammers — who are hot on the neck of leading goal scorer — Kamuzu Barracks’ Zeliat Nkhoma with five goals.
Kaduya, Saviel and Chiomba have games this afternoon — Silver v Wanderers and Civil Service United v Karonga United respectively while Silver’s Katinji is reportedly out of Action due to injury.
Meanwhile, after recording their third victory this season coming from two back-back-back 1-all draws against Mighty Wanderers and MAFCO away in Dwangwa and another 1-1 draw against Dedza Dynamos in the opening match, Bullets’ coach Kalisto Pasuwa is quoted by as saying the only way for the 2023 quadruple champions to regain dominance is for his players to respect every opposition.
He added that underestimating some teams has seen the team dropping down when it matters most: “It’s the attitude from our boys where at times they underage teams.
“You saw our centre backs trying to dribble at the back and you can’t be doing that at this level of football — we need to be careful; we need to respect these other teams that are coming at us.”
He also downplayed that his team was under pressure, saying it was too early to start panicking because there is still a long way to go.
“…We have only played seven games … remember, this is a new team we are building and several of my players are still out, nursing injuries.
“We are trying different combinations using players we promoted from our reserves and new players we bought from other teams. As you can see, we are trying to bring in some combinations so that we come up with a strong team — it will come good.”
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