The Big Tests Ahead

Coach Luis Oliveira Goncalves is eager to see how his players do when they take on top flight teams Argentina, United States and Turkey in the run up to the World Cup. He was happy with the team’s play in the COSAFA Castle Cup, but also knows that Mauritius and Lesotho are a notch below World Cup competition.

“I always said that I wanted to use last weekend to test some of the players on the outside of the team and we had six new players in the squad,” Goncalves told the BBC. “It was good for me to see but in terms of real preparation we can only asses our strengths and weaknesses if we are playing against strong sides.”

In addition to being pleased with Akwa’s form, Goncalves also was satisfied with Mateus, who in my opinion has to be on the team in Germany. He also liked what he saw out of Ze Augusto and Simao in the midfield. I guess we’ll know in a few days what the roster will look like. There are so many question marks - especially with the forwards - that I am eager to see the team he puts together.