Malawi suffered a narrow exit from the Mukuru Four Nations Tournament after losing 9–8 on penalties to Zambia following a goalless draw on Saturday afternoon at Obed Itani Chilume Stadium in Francistown, Botswana.
The result means the Flames miss out on a place in the final and will now face the hosts Botswana in the third-place playoff.
The match was closely contested, with Zambia’s aggressive approach forcing Malawi to rely on long balls for much of the encounter. The Flames showed improvement in the second half but were unable to find the breakthrough.
In the penalty shootout, Wisdom Mpinganjira and Ephraim Kondowe missed their spot kicks as Zambia progressed to the final.
Reflecting on the match, head coach Kalisto Pasuwa attributed the approach to Zambia’s intensity.
“Young stars can do anything on a good day. If you underrate them, they punish you. We were slow, but improved in the second half,” he said.
Pasuwa also praised debutant Mwisho Mhango of Hannover 96 for his performance.
“He did well and can be part of this team,” added the Flames coach.
Lineup: William Thole, Macdonald Lameck, Charles Petro, Nickson Nyasulu, Emmanuel Nyirenda, Lloyd Aaron (Ephraim Kondowe 70′), Richard Mbulu (Babatunde Adepoju 13′), Chawanangwa Kaonga (Wisdom Mpinganjira 45′), Mwisho Mhango (Lloyd Njaliwa 70′), Gomegzani Chirwa, Robert Saizi (Chikumbutso Salima 45′, Malango Mayele 90′)
