Zambia Women’s National Team goalkeeper Hazel Nali says her side will be looking to start their 2022 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations (AWCON) campaign off on a high note when they take on Cameroon in their opener on July 3.
Nali says starting the tournament with a ‘bang’ will set the tone for the Copper Queens’ targets of winning the tournament and booking a place at the ninth edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup to be jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand in 2023.
“We need to be ready for Cameroon. It won’t be an easy game.They (Cameroon) are angry with what we did to them in the Olympic qualifiers ,”she said, adding that the next Group B matches against Tunisia and Togo on July 6 and 9 respectively will not be easy.
“We want to start the game with a bang. The first game is always important and when you start with a bang it gives you direction of the tournament. What we want is the maximum points.”
The Turkey-based goalminder will be making her third trip to Africa’s biggest sporting extravaganza alongside defender Anita Mulenga – who appeared in the 2014 and 2018 editions.
“The experience is okay, looking at me and Anita (featuring for the third AWCON edition). It’s a great pleasure to be here, it takes courage and consistency and I am proud of myself,” Nali said.
Now on the books of Turkish Women’s Super League outfit Fatih Vatan Spor, the former Green Buffaloes goalkeeper said she was confident that her experience would help the team to meet their objective.
Nali will be in line to lead the Copper Queens against Phoenix Football Marrakech Feminine Club today (Saturday) evening, having mastered the post in the 1-1 draw with Morocco a week ago.
“My main objective is to help my team win all the games given a chance to play the matches. We need to win this friendly and take it seriously even if it’s just a club. The tournament is near and we need to start visualizing,” she said.
(By FAZ Media)
