By Edwin Mbewe
LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)–Malawi National Football Team head coach Kalisto Pasuwa has expressed optimism regarding his players’ fitness ahead of the Flames’ second-leg tie against Comoros Island today, March 8, 2025, at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe.
Speaking in a pre-match interview, the Zimbabwean tactician acknowledged the team’s struggles with match fitness in the second half of their previous game but remains confident in their ability to finish strong this time.
“In our last game away, we lacked match fitness in the second half. We pushed them, though not to the maximum. But we believe they will be able to finish strongly this time.
“We also addressed areas where we struggled to manage the ball, and I am upbeat that the team will deliver a better second half,” he said.
The Zimbabwean mentor added that out of the 25 players called up, Timothy Silwimba and Wasili Jaziya will miss the game, but Chikumbutso Salima is ready for selection.
Regarding the team’s tactical approach, Pasuwa emphasized an attacking strategy despite Malawi holding a comfortable 2-0 aggregate lead.
“We have also worked on the players’ mental approach. In football, if you go into a match thinking you are already leading 2-0, you might lose focus. The game starts at 0-0, so we need to be compact in our play.
“The best way to defend is to attack, so we are going forward with an attacking mindset while ensuring we defend in numbers. Let me add that these matches also serve as preparations for our upcoming World Cup qualifiers,” he added.
Malawi leads 2-0 on aggregate in the play-offs following their 2-0 away victory a few days ago, thanks to goals from Binwell Katinji and Zebron Kalima.
The result secured a victory for Pasuwa in his first assignment as Flames head coach.
The winner between Malawi and Comoros will face the winner of the South Africa vs. Egypt tie in the second round of the CHAN play-offs.
South Africa and Egypt played to a 1-1 draw in their first leg in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
Malawi is seeking its maiden qualification for the CHAN finals, a tournament exclusively for locally-based players.
In their last attempt, they were eliminated by Mozambique after drawing 1-1 at home at Bingu Stadium before failing to score in the away leg, which ended 0-0.
The Flames’ next assignment is the 2026 World Cup qualifier against Namibia on March 20, 2025, at Bingu National Stadium.
