Malawi travels to Botswana on September 3 for a final preparatory match for a crunch World Cup qualifier in Nigeria on September 7 in Calabar.

*Flames of Malawi

The Football Association of Malawi (FAM) president Walter Nyamilandu confirmed to the Malawi press that he expects the game against the Zebras to give coach Tom Saintfiet a final opportunity to assess the Flames ahead of the match.

The Flames trail group leaders the Super Eagles by two points going into this decisive match, hence the trip to Botswana is what Saintfiet must have been looking for.

Even more considering that in beating Rwanda 1-0 in an earlier warm-up match on August 14 2013, the Flames were without key players Joseph Kamwendo, Chiukepo Msowoya, Foster Namwela, Esau Kanyenda and Robert Ng’ambi due to injuries and work permit hitches at their respective clubs in Mozambique and South Africa.

Malawi has seven points and Nigeria nine hence the winner will advance to the final two-legged qualifying round for a place at the World Cup. Nigeria can advance with a draw. Malawi held Nigeria 1-1 in the first leg played in Blantyre last year.