Pasuwa demands strong opponents for Malawi friendlies

Malawi senior national team coach Kalisto Pasuwa knows the saying that iron sharpens another iron; hence, he has outlined what the Flames need to test themselves.

Ahead of the Flames’ participation in the four-nation tournament in Botswana from 23 to 31 March 2026, the former Zimbabwe handler stressed the need for playing warm up matches against stronger opposition.

Importance of fine-tuning against top North Africa teams

“We need to test ourselves against teams from North and West Africa where we know there are very strong sides. That will help improve our players,” Pasuwa told the Football Association of Malawi media.

“When the ball is at my feet, expect something to happen.” — Wallace Adam pic.twitter.com/z6EFj7Pk8R

— FA Malawi (@FaMalawi) March 9, 2026

The former FC Dynamos coach made the call as his charges prepare to face the Warriors of Zimbabwe, Botswana’s Zebras and Chipolopolo of Zambia in the invitational tournament. All these opponents are from Southern Africa.

How are fitness levels of Malawi players?

Pasuwa said his players, who are on off-season break in Malawi, are showing signs of improvement after undergoing rigorous training sessions since entering camp last week.

“The training has been going very well. We received most of the players on the first day and conducted physical tests to assess their condition because the boys were coming from the off-season,” he added.

The five-time TNM Super League winner further buttressed the importance of the friendlies scheduled for Francistown in Botswana in rebuilding the Flames cohesion and tactical understanding.

“These games are very important for us because we are playing after two or three months without international matches. We need to observe the players’ cohesion and coordination in terms of tactics because there are many things we cannot fully address in just a few days,” he added.

Why four-nation tournament was organised

Football associations from the four countries hatched the plan for the strength-building matches to prepare their national teams for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches.

Teams from Southern Africa struggle at all levels—including club and country—against North and West African opposition.

On the national team level, Zambia and South Africa are the only ones from SADC to have won the AFCON title. Mamelodi Sundowns, Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates, all from South Africa, have won the CAF interclub championships once each.