Malawi Women’s National Football Team Coach Lovemore Fazili will face the right test when they face the Atlas Lionesses of Morocco in an international friendly match on Thursday this week.
Fazili said the friendly match would give him a chance to assess if his charges had improved after recent international friendlies exposed weaknesses in some departments.
The coach told the Football Association of Malawi (Fam) website on Sunday that the friendly match would strengthen the team ahead of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) qualification second-round match against Angola.
“We had a wonderful week of training camp at Mpira Village [in Blantyre]. There were some players who had knocks. The doctors took care of them and everyone is now fit and ready for the journey.
“[Morocco] being one of the strong teams in Africa, the friendly match against Morocco is going to give our players confidence as we prepare for Angola in October,” Fazili is quoted as saying by the Fam website.
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Fazili also told the publication that the team had worked on the shortcomings they noticed during international friendly matches against Zambia and South Africa.
“We have worked on our defence and goalkeeping [departments], which had some weaknesses in the previous encounter against South Africa and Zambia and we hope to do better in Casablanca,” he said.
The Scorchers left the country yesterday for Casablanca, Morocco, ahead of their international friendly match against the Atlas Lionesses.
Fazili has travelled with all the 24 players he called into camp last week, including the five foreign country-based players namely Tabitha Chawinga, Rose Kabzere, Sabina Thom, Vanessa Chikupira and Bernadettar Mkandawire.
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The following is the full traveling squad:
Goalkeepers
Mercy Sikelo (Kukoma Ntopwa Women), Yamikani Kaonga (MDF Lioness), and Ireen Sibande (Silver Strikers Ladies)
Defenders
Benadetta Mkandawire (Biik Kazygurt), Ireen Khumalo (Silver Strikers Ladies), Rose Alufandika (Kukoma Ntopwa Women), Maureen Kenneth (Ascent Academy), Maggie Chavula (Ascent Academy), Justina Jumbo (Silver Strikers Ladies), Olivia Phikani (Kukoma Ntopwa Women)
Midfielders
Leticia Chinyamula (Ascent Academy), Faith Chimzimu (Ascent Academy), Tendai Sani (FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women), Zainab Kapanda (FCB Nyasa Big Bullets Women), Asimenye Simwaka (MDF Lioness), Jessie Yosefe (Civo Service Women), Rose Kabzere (Montpellier) Funny Magombo (Kukoma Ntopwa Women), Victoria Mkwala (Ascent Academy)
Attackers
Vanessa Chikupila (Biik Kazygurt), Chisomo Banda (Silver Strikers Ladies), Tabitha Chawinga (Ol Lyonnais), Sabina Thom (Lanchkhuti), Fatima Lali (Ascent Academy).
