The Malawi National Football Team, the Flames, will face Ethiopia in an international friendly match at Dire Dawa International Stadium on Saturday as part of preparations for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The match will kick off at 17:00 Malawi time, with the two sides also scheduled to meet again on Tuesday as part of the Flames’ June international friendly programme.
Head coach Kalisto Pasuwa said the technical panel has been working on improving the team’s attacking output while maintaining the defensive stability shown in recent matches.
“We did not change a lot on the defensive side because our defence has been okay. Yes, we need to fix one or two things, but it is the offensive part where maybe we are not scoring goals,” said Pasuwa.
Pasuwa said the matches will also provide an opportunity for players to prove themselves as the team continues building towards the AFCON qualifiers.
“We are expecting the players to play with maximum effort when given a chance and show us that they want to be part of the team we are preparing for the AFCON qualifiers,” he added.
The Flames coach also warned against complacency, saying Malawi must approach every opponent with the right mentality regardless of past records.
“That is one area we have been working on. If you look at the teams we think we have an upper hand against, those are the games where we end up losing points. So we are working on the mentality that against every team, we have to be positive,” said Pasuwa.
The last meeting between Malawi and Ethiopia came during the 2023 AFCON qualifiers, which ended in a goalless draw.
In the previous eight meetings between the two sides, Malawi have won three matches, Ethiopia have won once, while four matches have ended in draws.
Pasuwa also wished the Malawi Women’s National Team, the Scorchers, all the best as they face Tanzania in an international friendly on Saturday.
