‘Officiating Is Better’

Zakari Morou, captain of Togo’s national team, plies his trade with Liberty Professional Football Club of Ghana. In this short interview, he speaks on his team’s performance in the match against Ghana in the ongoing WAFU Nations Cup in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.

How would you rate your performance against Ghana?

I played well and every member of the team gave a good account of himself in the two matches we played against the Black Stars of Ghana. We lost one and won one, it’s not a bad performance afterall.

How did the people of Togo feel when you beat Ghana in the second match on Tuesday?

Honestly, they were happy at home because Ghana defeated us 2-1 when we met them in the first match and we also defeated them with the same margin in the second leg. We eventually won the match through penalty shootout, which give us the semi final ticket against Liberia. I think this was a big achievement to us because Ghana are a good side when it comes to African football.

You are playing Liberia this afternoon, what is your expectation?

My expectation is to play better and pray that we should come out victorious. What I know is that our opponents are not strong like Nigeria and Ghana .

What gave you the impression that Liberia cannot stop your team in the semi final?

Liberia are not technically better than us. They were lucky to beat Niger Republic . We have played the best of our game in this tournament and we are looking forward to the final against Nigeria.

Do you see Togo lifting the cup?

It is too early for me to say we will lift the cup. We have a match at hand against Liberia which we want to concentrate on. I am dreaming to play in the final of WAFU Cup. Our match against Liberia will determine if we can go all the way to lift the cup.

How do you rate the officiating of this tournament?

It was fair and better but there is room for improvement. I am satisfied with the officiating. I hope the officiating will be better in the remaining matches.