The Flames yesterday completed yet another cycle of disappointment at the Cosafa Cup after losing 1-0 to defending champions Angola in Group B at Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
From the moment the Flames lost 1-0 to Lesotho in the opening match and held Namibia 0-0, not much was expected from the Kallisto Pasuwa-led side which needed to at least defeat the Palancas Negras with not less than four goals to qualify for the semi-finals.
Despite the tall order, football fans back home, who watched the match on SuperSport, still held on to hope that the Flames might just go down with some dignity.
Mpinganjira (2ndR) and Singini mob
Angola’s Chico Banza. | Courtesy of Cosafa
However, this was never to be as the team disappointed the nation with another loss and failed to score as Angola punched a ticket to the semi-finals.
As usual, Malawi dominated possession, but they still failed to turn the advantage into anything meaningful.
Attackers Gaddie Chirwa and Blessings Singini were all over Angola defence in the opening minutes of the game.
But for all their efforts, the Mighty Wanderers duo failed to beat Angola goalkeeper Adilson da Cruz Cipriano, who made some brilliant saves inside the half-hour mark.
After an illustrious first-half, the
Flames conceded the goal just after recess.
It all started when goalkeeper George Chikooka had a touch on substitute Ambrosini Salvado’s shot which was already heading for the side of the net.
Midfielder Randy Nteka headed the resultant corner kick in the 62nd minute near the post after catching defenders Blessings Mpokela and Emmanuel Nyirenda flat-footed.
The goal unsettled the Flames who had hoped to continue their dominance, forcing Pasuwa to make quick changes to reinvigorate the team.
He introduced Oscar Petro for Blessings Singini while Gaddie Chirwa paved the way for Olson Kanjira
Zelliat Nkhoma also came in for Chawanangwa Gumbo while Wongani Lungu replaced Promise Kamwendo.
The match was not short of drama as it was interrupted in the 80th minute after by video assistant referee technology (VAR) failed.
Following the glitch, the match was played for the last 10 minutes of regulation time and 10 minutes added on time without VAR.
In those minutes, impressive Wisdom Mpinganjira had a chance to level the scores in the 89th minute after dribbling past two defenders in the box, only to shoot wide.
Another opportunity of levelling the scores fell on Chikumbutso Salima in the added on time, but he too shot wide when he tried to curl in a Kanjira through ball.
In a post-match interview, assistant coach Peter Mponda sadi the loss was painful after making one mistake.
He said: “Today, it’s more painful because we only lost through one set piece, which we didn’t defend
