Football Association of Malawi (FAM) has secured an international friendly match for the Flames against Lesotho ahead of the 2023 back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers against Egypt.

The association’s president Walter Nyamilandu said in an interview yesterday that the friendly match is scheduled for February 25 at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe.

The Flames taking on Lesotho in Cosafa Cup in South Africa last year

He said: “The match has been organised as we are working on the modalities of the overseas camping in Saudi Arabia next month.

“This will give a chance for the Flames to gain match fitness as well as enable the coach to select final players that should proceed to face Egypt on 24th March.”

Nyamilandu further said they have agreed with their Lesotho counterparts that FAM will host Lukuena in Lilongwe and that the Lesotho Football Association will meet their team’s travel expenses.

On the choice of Lesotho, he said: “They are an improved side, having drawn with Ivory Coast during the 2021Afcon qualifiers in a group which also included Comoros and Zambia.

“We also have a score to settle with them as they beat us at the Cosafa Cup tournament last year.”

On his part, Flames coach Mario Marinica said while he was yet to be informed about the friendly, “playing Lesotho is great news provided that we will have all local-based players available for camping as well as the game”.

He said: “This could be an excellent opportunity to calibrate our local players’ game understanding, give them a chance to play a good competitive game as most of them have not played any game since 17th December last year and others as far as November.

“They will get experience and exposure at international level.At the same time, we can assess who may fit the criteria to be part of the provisional squad that will travel to Saudi Arabia for camping.”

Lesotho are ranked 147th in the world, 23 places behind the Flames.

A 26-member Flames squad was expected to go into camp yesterday to step up preparations for the Egypt games.

The Flames will face the Pharaohs of Egypt between March 22 and 24 while the reverse fixture is scheduled for between March 26 and 28 at Bingu National Stadium.

All the teams in Group B have three points each, having won one and lost one, but Ethiopia’s Walyas top the group courtesy of a better goal difference with the Flames on second position.

Malawi beat Ethiopia 2-1 in their opening qualifier at home in June last year before going down 1-0 to Guinea’s Syli Nationale in Conakry three days later.

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