Zimbabwe’s Mighty Warriors endured a disappointing campaign in the 2028 Olympic qualifiers after suffering a heavy 9-0 aggregate defeat to Malawi’s Scorchers, losing 2-0 in the first leg before being thrashed 7-0 on home soil in the return leg.

The second leg proved to be an even bigger nightmare for the Mighty Warriors, who conceded seven goals in front of their home supporters as the Scorchers produced a dominant display to complete a convincing victory.

Malawi controlled much of the encounter, demonstrating superior possession, pace and physical strength against a Zimbabwean side that struggled to cope with the visitors’ intensity, particularly in the second half.

Despite the heavy defeat, the Mighty Warriors showed some encouraging signs in the opening half, creating several scoring opportunities but failing to convert them into goals. Their inability to capitalise on those chances proved costly as Malawi took control of the match and punished the hosts’ defensive shortcomings.

Mighty Warriors head coach Stella Gotal acknowledged the difficulty of the encounter, admitting that her team lacked a clinical edge in front of goal and struggled physically as the match progressed.

“It was a very difficult and very tough game for us. In the first half, we had a lot of opportunities that we didn't use. We didn't score, we were not efficient, and we were not clinical in front of the opponent's goal, which somehow at halftime was 2-0,” said Gotal.

She added that her players struggled to maintain their performance in the second half, with fitness levels becoming a major concern against a physically strong Malawian side.

“But in the second half, we struggled a lot physically. Let's not forget that Malawi is one of the best teams in Africa. They just came from the AFCON, where they were finalists against Cameroon,” she said.

Gotal also highlighted Malawi’s preparations for upcoming international assignments, including the World Cup in Brazil, as evidence of the experience and quality of the opposition Zimbabwe faced.

The coach, however, insisted that the heavy defeat should not derail Zimbabwe’s rebuilding process, stressing that her technical team had already identified fitness as one of the key areas requiring improvement.

“Even when I came to Zimbabwe, I mentioned that one of the aspects that we would like to develop is fitness level. Maybe Malawi had an advantage in the second half in terms of fitness level because we were really struggling,” Gotal said.

Despite the humiliating scoreline, Gotal urged her players and the nation not to lose hope, describing the defeat as part of a longer journey towards building a competitive national team.

“This is something that shouldn't demotivate us. Like I said, Rome was not built in one day, and we just started to build a house. This is the beginning of our journey,” she said.

Gotal revealed that the next phase of the rebuilding process would involve identifying talented players both within Zimbabwe and beyond its borders, with another training camp expected to take place soon.

“The next step would be, again, to identify the talents in Zimbabwe, but also outside of Zimbabwe. The next camp will be very soon, and all these aspects that I mentioned that we should work on, we will work on and definitely we will get there one day,” she said.