Malawian striker, Gabadinho Mhango, has spoken about his frustrations of having his career slowed down by recurring injuries at Orlando Pirates in South Africa this season.

The Flames striker was speaking to Orlando Pirates media team to reflect on his career for the DStv club and the national team.

Asked whether injuries have affected him, Mhango said: “Absolutely! But you know, as a player, you need to accept that injuries are a part of the game. You might tell yourself ‘I want to do this and that’ during the course of the season, but injuries can disrupt those plans.

“Yeah, I have to say it was hard. Especially coming back after an injury can sometimes feel like starting from scratch. It can affect your performance. But credit must go to the Orlando Pirates medical team for their hard work behind the scenes.”

Nonetheless, Mhango said he was happy that he was working his way back to full match fitness and that he helped the Flames qualify for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations finals.

“It’s something special for the country. You know Malawi is not a big country, and qualifying for AFCON is something I think will be remembered for a long time. It’s a great feeling for the Malawian national team, as well as everybody in Malawi.

“We believed in each other. I think some people outside the setup probably did not believe we could pull it off. I mean, we may look small on the field. When you see us, you’d say we are small boys playing against grown men. But at the end of the day, we have that heart,” he told Pirates website. 

Malawi defied all odds to qualify for the AFCON finals after beating South Sudan and Uganda away and at home by 1-0 margins.