Malawi National Women’s Football Team, the Scorchers, will face neighbours Zambia in their final Group C match of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations on Wednesday, 5 August.
The Scorchers go into the match with a perfect record after winning their opening two matches against defending champions Nigeria and Egypt.
Malawi need to avoid defeat against the Copper Queens to progress to the quarterfinals, but head coach Lovemore Fazili says his side will not play for a draw.
“We have been preparing very well and the players are responding very well. It looks like everybody wants to play, but in football there are only 11 players starts the game, so we will try to choose the best 11 to start the game,” said Fazili.
“We are focused on winning the game, not thinking about a draw. First of all, we want to win and keep a clean sheet. A draw will be fine if things do not go as expected, but our aim is to win the game,” he said.
Fazili said finishing the group with maximum points would be a major achievement for the Scorchers in their maiden WAFCON appearance.
“If we win, we will have nine points, so it will be good for Malawi to collect nine points in this group,” he added.
The coach also welcomed the return of Asimenye Simwaka, saying her presence has boosted morale in camp.
“Indeed, it is good that Asimenye is here with us. It is a morale booster to the team and the squad,” said Fazili.
However, Malawi will be without Rose Alufandika, who is suspended after receiving a red card in the 3-1 win over Egypt.
“We are going to miss Alufandika, but we have a plan B for her. The player who is going to replace Rose has confidence and has played in defence before, so we do not have any problem with that,” he said.
Malawi last faced Zambia in a Three Nations Tournament at Bingu National Stadium, where the match ended in a 1-1 draw. Before that, the two sides met in February 2025 in two friendly matches, with Zambia winning the first game 2-0 before Malawi responded with a 3-2 victory.
The Scorchers currently lead Group C with six points and will be looking to complete the group stage unbeaten.
