Flames court Ethiopia for friendly

FAM says the Flames could face Ethiopia in a friendly match on March 20 as part of their preparations for their 2022 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) crucial qualifier against South Sudan.

Malawi will face South Sudan away in Khartoum, Sudan on March 24 before hosting Uganda’s Cranes in their last qualifier at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre five days later on March 21.

Football Association of Malawi (FAM) general secretary Alfred Gunda said in an interview yesterday: “We are finalising logistics for the friendly with our Ethiopian counterparts that they should host the Flames en route to Sudan.

“We are hopeful that things will go according to plan.”

In a separate interview, Flames coach Meck Mwase said it is important that the Flames should play a friendly match so that they can work on formations and tactics.

“It is also crucial that we assess the players in a game situation ahead of the South Sudan qualifier, especially considering that local players have been inactive for a while,” he said.

The Flames are third in their group with four points from four games, four points behind leaders Burkina Faso and three below second-placed Uganda Cranes.

South Sudan anchor the four-team group with three points.

To qualifym the Flames need to win both their remaining matches against South Sudan and Uganda and hope that the Cranes will not win their other fixture against Burkina Faso.

The last time Malawi qualified for the continental showpiece was in 2010 in Angola.