By Zim Sport Live Writer
Zimbabwe coach Stella Gotal said her side still has a fighting chance of progressing in Olympic qualifying after the Mighty Warriors lost 2-0 to Malawi in the first leg of their opening-round tie on Friday.
The Chawinga sisters, Temwa and Tabitha, scored either side of half-time at Bingu National Stadium to give Malawi the advantage in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games qualifier.
Zimbabwe were second best before the break but grew into the match after the restart and dominated large spells of the second half.
Substitute Privilege Mupeti and Ethel Chinyerere both missed good chances to pull a goal back.
“I feel we have a fighting chance,” Gotal said after the match.
“We played well especially in the second half and I feel we could have scored at least once.
“But football is like that, we have to fight and overturn this at home.”
Gotal, who is in charge of a largely new-look squad, said she was encouraged by what she saw.
“This is a new team, at least in the context of me being a new coach and I am happy with what I have seen,” she said.
“It was a good game and I have the base to start building from the way I saw things.”
The second leg is scheduled for Tuesday at the National Sports Stadium in Harare. Zimbabwe flew home immediately after the match to prepare.
