‘We can make the final’ – Shimooshili

Namibia Football Association president Robert Shimooshili says the Brave Warriors can even reach the final of Afcon 2023 following their historic 1-0 victory against Tunisia in Korhogo on Tuesday night. 

It was a huge upset against one of the powerhouses of African football, but Shimooshili said it didn’t surprise him. 

“The performance was excellent, it was very impressive, but that is what we expected. It’s also in line with what we motivated and encouraged the boys to do and they assured us that they would make the Namibian people happy. They did exactly that … the boys delivered and now we are looking forward to the next game,” he said. 

“The way it looks now, there is hope as far as the future of Namibian football is concerned and don’t be surprised if you see Namibia making the final – it can happen because we have the capacity to do that,” he added.

Shimooshili thanked the countless Namibians who sent messages of support to the players.

“The players did exceptionally well, but the Namibian people also did well because they sent encouraging and motivating messages to the boys in order for them to do good.”

He also thanked all the football administrators throughout Namibia for their hard work.

“It shows that Namibian football is improving, but we now have to work harder to develop our football further. We have a lot of talented players, and I would especially like to congratulate all of those people who manage and administer football in the regions, they have done a great job and and this victory is also for them,” he said. 

“These players did not come from the top tier league, they originally came from the villages, so the leaders and members of football need to be appreciated. They did a great job and I’d like them to continue doing so, and from the association’s side, we will continue to support them by all means.

“You will find players in the regions playing without goalposts or youngsters without soccer boots, so we need to see how we can assist them. The administrators however need to have the correct structures and good corporate governance, in terms of their administration and their management,” he said.