Malawi and Zambia will rekindle their rivalry in the COSAFA Cup quarterfinals this coming weekend after The Flames confirmed their quarterfinal spot on Tuesday night following a hard fought 2-1 win over Namibia.
Playing at the King Zwelithini Stadium in Umlazi on Tuesday, Malawi came back from a goal down to clinch this vital win scoring on the stroke of half-time and very early in the second half.
Two goals from PSL stars Gabadinho Mhango and Gerald Phiri Jnr (penalty) were enough to see Malawi progressing to the last eight for the first time since they won the Plate final four years ago.
Playing this tournament with their B-team, Namibia drew first blood in this game scoring through a powerful header from Charles Hambira in the 16th minute.
They play Seychelles in the last game and could finish with six points but that won’t be enough to topple Malawi on head to head.
Namibian second assistant coach Colin Benjamin accepted that they lost to a better team on the day.
Mozambique’s disappointing performance in the COSAFA Cup continued again in this edition as they failed to beat Seychelles on Tuesday, with their game finishing goalless.
Coach Abel Xavier, the former Portuguese international says this tournament has given his youthful squad the much needed challenge.
For Seychelles, they finally picked up their first point in the tournament after losing 3-0 to Malawi in the opening game. They play Namibia in their final game tomorrow evening and the Islanders’ head coach Gavin Jeanne says they will continue to give young players a chance to develop them for the future. – Report by Velile Mnyandu
