January 30, 2008
With Egypt starting off the tournament so well, seeing of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon, then following up with another big victory over the Desert Hawks of Sudan, they’ll 
be facing a very different opponent this time around as they face off against Zambia, who despite having just four players in their team plying their trade in Europe, have made a strong impression in their first match against Sudan, though theey failed miserably in their quest to tame the Lions of Cameroon.
Both teams will be entering those final 90 minutes with the sole aim of grabbing a very precious three points, yet the consequence of either team winning can have a totally opposite outcome on another. With six points already in the bag, the Egyptian team come into this game needing at least a point of three available to qualify for the next stage as group winners, but on the other hand, the Copper Bullets need not only three points, but three points with a minimum of scoring in three goals against an Egyptian team who’ve only conceded one goal from open play during the past two games, just to have a chance of passing through into the next stage, and in this case kicking Egypt out of the tournament, in the condition of Cameroon overcoming Sudan, in what might be the surprise of the tournament.
Hassan Shehata’s men have done tremendously well in the past two games, and they should continue that scintillating form that surprised many fans, pundits and doubters alike. Looking back at the two games, Shehata adopts a 4-4-2 formation that evolves into a 3-4-3 when the measures call, with a front-line partnership of Emad Met’eb, Amr Zaki, and Mohamed Zidan doing the rounds upfront with tremendous support from Shawky and the Egypt versus Sudan Man of the Match Abdel Rabo in the middle, the Egyptian team really look like a formidable force to be reckoned with.
One of Egypt’s problems in the Cameroon match was their defence against crosses, but Shehata seemed to straighten out the kinks in training, which was evident in the Sudan match, with a backline led by the impressive Gomaa and the very solid Hani Saeed that’s bound to make any strike partnership suffer.
Manager Patrick Phiri on the other hand will have to pull off a very convincing and motivating pre-match talk, pulling out all the tricks up his sleeve as the only chance Zambia is having of grabbing a place in the second round is by beating the Egyptian side by a hefty number of goals. 
Phiri will be hoping strike partners James Chamanga and Jacob Mulenga emulate their performance against Sudan in their first game, where they got two goals between them, and surely, that same performance is required as a bare minimum. Having scored three goals against Sudan and conceding none, they weren’t as fortunate in the second game against Cameroon, as they let in five goals, with more than half of them coming from horrendous defensive errors; so the first thing Phiri will be doing is making sure that the last line of defence is in the right state of mind to fend off the Egyptian strike force.
Leaving aside all mix and match calculations, Wednesday’s encounter between the two teams should provide a an open ended game, with the Zambian team aiming for an incredible upset, and the Egyptian team aiming to cement their place on top of the group in hope of facing off an easier opponent in the next round. Whether the Copper Bullets will kill off the Pharaohs, or whether the Pharaohs will shield off those Bullets, come kick off time one thing is for certain, football fans will be in for an entertaining 90 minutes of exhilarating action.
TEAM NEWS
Egypt
After suffering knocks in the Sudan game, Ahmed Fathi and Hosni Abdel Rabo are in doubt for the encounter.
Ahmed Fathi, suffering from knee pain, and Abdel Rabo, suffering from a muscle injury due to a knock in the Sudan game, might be rested for this clash to get them fit for the next round of games if Egypt succeed in going through as is expected.
All other players are available for the Egyptian team, with players like Hassan Mostafa and Ahmed Hassan possibly getting a place in the starting line up.
Zambia
With the problem of players striking and not playing the Cameroon match due to the players requesting extra bonus for beating Sudan 3-0, manager Patrick Phiri should have all his players available for the important encounter.
The strike partnership of James Chamanga and Jacob Mulenga should continue upfront and the energetic Felix Katongo will likely be leading the midfield.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Egypt
Mohamed Abu Treika- Although not being in Egypt’s starting lineup in the first two games, it was evident every time Abu Treika came on how much finesse and flair this uber-popular Egyptian idol possesses both on the field by scoring the crucial goals, and off the field by touching the lives of millions of football enthusiasts everywhere.
Zambia
Felix Katongo – Having impressed in the Sudan and Cameroon match, Katongoshould provide the goal threat necessary, with the help of his brother Chris, Mulenga and Chamanga, together they can try to break down the Egyptian defenses and carry on onto the next round. 
The Benfica rumoured bound has been impressive at the tournament that has seen claim the two man of match. The Petro Athletico de Luanda has been one of the stars of the group stages so far alongside his former teammate Manoucho. The Manchester United bound striker has notched in three goals for Angola.
Barclays Cup here to stay, says Masud
BARCLAYS Bank Zambia have pledged their commitment to sponsoring the second edition of the lucrative Barclays Cup this season. 
Barclays incoming managing director, Zafar Masud, said in an interview that the bank was commitment to sponsoring Zambia’s richest football tournament.
Masud added that this year’s Barclays Cup would be bigger following the success of the inaugural tournament last year.
“Whatever we are doing we will be better than the rest,” he said.
Masud also disclosed that Barclays would sponsor two other major sporting events this season.
“We are seriously thinking about sponsoring two other major events this year and a press statement on that will be released soon,” he said.
Barclays Bank last year initiated the K5.2 billion Barclays Cup football tournament which was won by 2007 league champions, Zesco United who beat Chambishi 4-2 on post-match penalties after a scoreless draw.
Zesco collected K90 million as the first Barclays Cup champions while Chambishi walked away with K70 million for finishing runner-up.
Meanwhile, the 20 winners of the Barclays Premier League Football promotion left for the United Kingdom yesterday for a weekend soccer treat.
The 10 winners, all Barclays Bank customers, and their partners will watch English Premier League games in Manchester and London.-THE POST
Kanu shocks Eagles
The Super Eagles’ dressing room during halftime of the 2-0 win over Benin was not a place for the faint-hearted, after skipper Nwankwo Kanu shocked everyone by ripping into his teammates for a shambolic first half display in a desperate situation.
With the score still locked at 0-0 and the Nigerians needing to win, KickOffNigeria.com gathers that the usually soft-spoken Portsmouth striker was like a beast unleashed in the dressing room, and barely waited for coach Berti Vogts to finish his own general dressing down before laying into his teammates.
Kanu, however, played down the incident, stating that it was just his way of motivating the players
“We were wasting corner-kicks, throw-ins and free-kicks, and in a game like this when every little thing counts, it is the simple basic things that make the difference. But they were taking it for granted and I had to tell them that,” Kanu told KickOffNigeria.com after the game.
“Other people also spoke their mind about what was happening on the pitch. One thing about this team is that we are honest with each other. Nobody carries anything in his mind that he cannot tell the other person, so that we can deal with it and move on.”
It was not only in the dressing room that Kanu showed his other side. On the ride from the hotel to the stadium, morale was down and players were singing with little enthusiasm, until the skipper took action and told everyone to put their hearts into the singing and clapping.
Pienaar scare for Bafana
Bafana Bafana midfielder Steven Pienaar limped off the pitch following a knock in this morning’s training session at Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi.
‘Schillo’ sustained an injury to his left ankle and will need a late fitness test to determine his readiness for the must-win Africa Cup of Nations Group D clash against the Lions of Teranga, Senegal, on Thursday.
Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira is, however, confident that the midfielder will be okay for tomorrow’s game.
“I do not think it is something serious. I am sure he will be fine for tomorrow’s game,” he says.
The coach also responded to questions about Tsepo Masilela, who was substituted for Brett Evans in the game against Tunisia. The Maccabi Haiffi leftback appeared to be complaining of a pulled muscle as Katlego Mphela took the field against Tunisia.
“Tsepo was substituted because of a minor injury,” he says. “We are hoping he will be OK for the game against Senegal. He has been training this week, but I would say his chances of playing are 7 out of 10.”
Fifa make Cousin ruling
Fifa have stepped in and ruled that Fulham are not allowed to sign Rangers striker Daniel Cousin. 
Football’s world governing body have deemed it illegal for the Gabon international to sign for what would be a third club in the current season, thus scuppering a proposed £3 million move to the Premier League side.
Cousin only joined the Glasgow outfit from Lens last summer, and having played for the French outfit for just 20 minutes before his move has been made ineligible for transfer again this campaign.
Both clubs had hoped that Fifa would bend on the 30-year-old’s situation, but the body have refused to sanction the move, sticking strictly to the letter of the law which states a player cannot play for more than two clubs in one season.
Moyes calls for African break 
The African Cup of Nations has for a long time been the bane of top flight managers across Europe with many calling for all kinds of measures to compensate for the loss of players to the tournament, but now Everton manager David Moyes has made his suggestion on how to counter the problem.
The Scot believes that a break in the Premier League season to coincide with the competition would solve the issues that arise when teams such as his are hit hard by absences due to African players leaving for international duty.
Moyes has lost Joseph Yobo, Aiyegbeni Yakubu and Steven Pienaar to the ACN, the last of whom was the centre of an argument with the South African set-up after The Toffees attempted to keep hold of him for an extra game before his departure.
The visit of Tottenham to Goodison Park on Wednesday evening sees Moyes’ side depleted by the trio’s absence, as well as suspensions for Tim Cahill and Tony Hibbert, and Moyes believes a break is the answer to such dilemmas.
“We were embroiled in trying to get Steven Pienaar out and everyone knows what happened there,” Moyes said.
“You cannot win. But maybe now we have to consider if we close the Premier League season down during the African Cup of Nations.
“That would be the correct respect for Africa and the players in it.
“If we want to bring players in from that part of the world we should be rightly allowed to do so, which we are, but it is not a fair playing field if you cannot field your best team.”
The ACN is not the only gripe Moyes has at present after Cahill once again became a bone of contention for his involvement with the Australia national side, for whom he is scheduled to fly to Qatar next week for.
“I think it’s ridiculous that someone has to fly halfway around the world in between two league matches at this stage of the season,” said Moyes.
“But Tim has to make the decision on whether he goes to play for Australia or not.
“He has got a hamstring injury just now so we will have to see if that hinders him in any way.”
One player who Moyes is hoping will be available for the visit of Spurs is Leon Osman, who will face a late fitness test to determine the extent of calf and groin problems.
“We need him because we are short of numbers just now,” admitted Moyes.
“He’s had a very good season – the last couple of games he has been a bit quieter because he’s come back from a broken toe.
“Due to our lack of numbers and Steven Pienaar being away just now it’s forced us to put him in earlier than we would have liked to.”
45 Comments on "Zambia’s last chance"
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heraish on Wed, 30th Jan 2008 9:11 PM
Did some Zambian players actually refuse to take the field against Cameroon?