Malawi National Women’s Football Team head coach Lovemore Fazili says the Scorchers are fully prepared for their 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinal match against Ghana on Sunday.
The Scorchers will face the Black Queens at Al Madina Stadium in a decisive encounter, with the winner set to qualify for the semifinals and secure a direct ticket to the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Fazili said the team understands what is at stake and will approach the match with full commitment.
“We are very prepared for tomorrow’s game. We are serious because there is a lot at stake. We are supposed to get a win in tomorrow’s game,” said Fazili.
“I am sure we are going there seriously to give out everything so that we can be victorious. If we go through, it means we are going to play at the World Cup next year. This is something everybody is looking for,” he added.
The Scorchers go into the match after a 2-1 defeat to Zambia in their final Group C match. Despite the loss, Malawi finished top of the group in their maiden WAFCON appearance.
Fazili said the defeat to Zambia did not take away the positives from the team’s performance, especially in the second half.
“I totally agree that we lost that game against Zambia, but positively, I think we played very well. Especially in the second half, we managed to fight back. We got one goal and at the end of the game we were down 2-1,” he said.
“But we were on top of the game and played very well. Whatever we left from the Zambia game, I think we have taken it into the Ghana game. The players are hungry and want to continue from where they left in the second half against Zambia.”
Malawi will be without three key players for the quarterfinal. Sabina Thom has been ruled out for the rest of the tournament with a knee injury, while Leticia Chinyamula and Madyina Nguluwe are suspended after accumulating two yellow cards.
Fazili admitted the trio will be missed, but said the technical panel has prepared replacements.
“Definitely, we are going to miss the three because they contributed a lot in the three games we played. But we have plan B for their replacements and they are good players as well,” said Fazili.
“I am very sure they are going to deliver. These are also players who need to be given a chance to play and start this coming game.”
Fazili said qualification to the World Cup would be a historic gift to Malawians and a major milestone for FAM.
“A win tomorrow is very important because this is what Malawians have been looking for. This is what the Football Association has been looking for. It will be a very good thing to give to Malawians that we have qualified to play at the World Cup next year,” he said.
“This also goes to the President of the Football Association of Malawi, Fleetwood Haiya, and the entire FAM Secretariat. For us and the players, this achievement would be huge, and we would celebrate together with Malawians because it has never happened before.”
This will be the third meeting between Malawi and Ghana in recent times. The two sides met last year in an international friendly which ended 3-1 in favour of the Black Queens, before meeting again in July this year, when Ghana won 4-0 in another friendly match.
